L&S adviser guides students through inauguration experience

A UW–Madison staff member will be among the Washington, D.C., elite next week as part of an inaugural conference of 15,000 students from around the country.

Rebecca Ryan, associate director of the Cross-College Advising Service in the College of Letters and Science, will be a faculty adviser to the Presidential Youth Inaugural Conference, held every four years. The conference gives students a chance to participate in the events surrounding the presidential inauguration, including keynote speeches by Colin Powell and Al Gore and roundtable discussions with speakers such as Tucker Carlson and Mary Matalin. The conference culminates with Barack Obama’s inauguration day, where Ryan and the student participants will watch the parade and ceremony and attend a black-tie ball at the Smithsonian.

Ryan got the opportunity to act as adviser to the group via her role as co-adviser to the Madison chapter of the Golden Key International Honour Society. She’ll be among 800 educators who will advise the students ranging in age from middle school to college; Ryan’s group includes 25 college students. She’ll tour the city, lead discussions with the students about the events and generally guide the students through the experience.

“I’m hoping for a great adventure,” she says. “I’ll be very busy, but I hope something really cool will come from the experience.”

The conference begins on Saturday, Jan. 17, with a couple of days of training for the faculty advisers before the students arrive. Ryan plans to blog about the experience. “I’ll try to update it as often as I have something to say —time will be tight!” she says.