At the Morgridge Center for Public Service, civic engagement is paramount, and is often brought to life by the student interns working to address challenges in the Madison community.
Two of these interns, Mira Halker and Sam Arnold, are working on projects that aim to tackle topics around housing, democratic participation and racial disparities on campus.
Halker, a sophomore from Arizona, has public service in her DNA. With a family history rooted in service, she grew up surrounded by conversations about civic duty and politics. She took on that family tradition beginning in high school, interning in her legislative district and later working her way up to congressional campaigns.
“I wanted to continue being involved in Madison in some way, but not in a strictly partisan sense,” Halker says. “It’s about advocating for other students and making sure their voices are part of the larger conversation.”
This semester that advocacy is materializing in the form of an affordable housing panel scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 14. Halker and Arnold are working in collaboration with the Associated Students of Madison (ASM) to provide students with a broader and better understanding of the housing crisis, ensuring that each person has a space to speak up and speak out with problems and solutions.
“Affordable housing is such a salient issue for students,” Arnold explains. “It only worsens as time goes on, and if those basic needs aren’t met, students can’t engage fully in public service or the campus community.”
Arnold is a senior from Kenosha, WI, who joined the civic engagement team hoping to take his passion for governmental policy and turn it into a student-facing responsibility. For him, having the opportunity to make civic topics part of student life is critical.
“Working here is different from my past policy and government roles because I get to see change firsthand,” he says. “When a student registers to vote or learns something new at a panel, you’re right there as the catalyst for that moment. That’s rewarding in a way behind-the-scenes work can’t be.”
Beyond the housing panel, the civic engagement team is taking on two other projects this semester. They are working to collaborate with the Wisconsin Institute on Citizenship and Civil Dialogue, hoping to host workshops that will explore constructive conversations. This could mean sessions focusing on everything from free speech to polarization in public service.
“In today’s climate, it’s crucial to equip ourselves with tools to step back and recognize when a debate is about policy, not about undermining someone’s humanity,” Arnold says. “The workshops will help students and staff navigate those moments and promote healthier dialogue.”
The next initiative is a potential documentary screening and discussion on racial disparities in Wisconsin’s criminal justice system, part of the series Wisconsin in Black and White. The event is intended to have students spend time reflecting on inequity and figure out different ways to reform the systemic problem.
“These screenings aren’t just about raising awareness,” Arnold notes. “They’re about asking: what can we do, right here in Wisconsin, to address these disparities?”
For Halker, it is imperative that every project keeps students at the core of the work. For her, even when confronting abstract policy discussions, her motivation stems from the conversations and relationships she forms with peers who are directly impacted by said policies.
“Hearing student perspectives reminds me why this matters,” she says. “It’s easy to get lost in the polarization, but when you sit down with someone and hear how housing or other issues affect their daily life, it gives purpose to what we do.”
This student-centered approach also appears in the center’s outreach initiatives. Their proposed collaboration with ASM provides access to a wider audience and their community partnerships help put the Morgridge Center name at the forefront of student conversation.
“We want to reach beyond the students already plugged into civic life,” Arnold says. “The more voices we bring in, the richer the conversation and the stronger our solutions will be.”
Both Arnold and Halker view their work as part of a larger story, one that lays the groundwork for a future in public service, whether that be practicing law or drafting policy. Arnold hopes to attend law school, carrying forward the skills he has learned at the Morgridge Center, whether that be communication, organization or community leadership. Halker sees herself continuing in public service, following the precedent her family has set, but individualizing it, ensuring that her path is student driven.
“At the end of the day, civic engagement is about connecting with people where they are and building solutions together,” Halker says. “If students walk away from these events feeling more informed and more capable of making change, then we’ve done our job.”