ABINGTON, Pa. — Congressmember Madeleine Dean, Pennsylvania’s representative for the 4th District in Washington, D.C., encouraged Penn State Abington students to impact their communities by voting and participating in civic life. She appeared on campus through an invitation from the Student Government Association’s Committee on Governmental Affairs.
The event was the culmination of a semester’s worth of work for sophomore Fi Montany, who organized voter registration drives this fall.
“Having a recently re-elected representative come and talk to students about how we matter was absolutely amazing. Rep. Dean was extremely down to earth and very excited about starting a conversation with students about important topics,” said Montany, the director of the Committee on Governmental Affairs.
Dean explained to the students how she organically realized that she wanted to serve since she was raised in a family that often discussed current events. When she was 18, a friend suggested she run for the hyper-local role of committeeperson, campaigning door-to-door because she wanted to get involved.
"I tell that story to people your age because sometimes people open a door for you that might make a difference in the trajectory of your life. It gave me a fire, and the idea that someday I might run for office,” she said.
During her careers as a lawyer and teaching at the college level, the desire never waned.
“It was always inside me, this notion I’m going to serve someday. It's worth doing,” she said.