Welcome to the Weekly Spotlight, where you can learn about on-campus organizations in one easy place.

This week we spoke with Tom Valeo, vice president of the Florida Atlantic College Democrats. The club has 32 active members that travel around the world, meet with elected officials and engage in heated debates with the FAU College Republicans.

UP: Can you give me a basic overview of what FAU College Democrats is all about?

TV: The purpose of the FAU College Democrats is to inform college students about the issues that affect us at the state, local and federal level, along with the different ways to get involved in your community, and as often as possible we bring people onto campus to speak. We certainly give everybody the opportunity to learn about different ways to get politically involved in their community.

UP: Do the FAUCDs support one particular candidate over another?

TV: As individuals in the club we all have our own opinions on the different issues and candidates, which gives us an excellent opportunity to debate the issues. However, as a College Democrats Chapter we do not support one particular candidate over another. We will support whomever the Democratic nominee is.

UP: Have debates ever gotten really heated as a result of the different perspectives?

TV: Oh of course! So much so that we had hosted our own debate last semester on campus. These debates got so heated and interesting that we had to turn it into a whole event.  But we are really lucky that everyone is very respectful of the different opinions.

UP: We noticed that your club went to Mount Vernon to visit the home of George Washington. What inspired the trip? What’s the most interesting thing that happened?

TV: That was a great trip! Well, a few of us were hanging out and realized that many of us had not been to Washington D.C. in a long time. Spring break was coming up so we took that as our opportunity. We made our way up to the nation’s capital. We saw Mount Vernon, visited the National Archive Museum, where the Constitution and Bill of Rights are kept, and all the rest of the amazing monuments that are up there. I think all of us would agree that the most interesting part of the trip was visiting the Capitol building. We were given the opportunity to sit at a U.S Senate and House of Representative live sessions. Watching the legislators in session was an amazing experience.

UP: Was the trip paid for as a club or did students have to pay individually?

TV: We do have due-paying members, and those dues go toward travel and event organization. As a club, we do organize different fundraisers for trips.

UP: What kinds of fundraisers do you have?

TV: We haven’t hosted a formal sit down dinner to fundraise since 2012, although look out for that come the fall — we’ll be patterning up with our elected officials. We have been able to receive funds from our local Democratic Executive Committee in Palm Beach, who have been extremely supportive. We’ve also been fortunate enough to receive funds from Democrats in the area who support our efforts and are committed to engaging young people in the political process.

UP: Partnering with elected officials? What type of relationship does your club have with the people on charge? We noticed on Facebook that you met Bill Clinton!

TV: I did! I have met both Bill and Hillary! We have a great relationship and receive an immense amount of support from from the local Democratic Party and other activist groups in the area. Our local DEC and state party are extremely invested in making sure we have the resources necessary. We receive tickets to galas, fundraisers, and get quite a few members to be on the VIP list when we have people like President Obama, Michelle Obama, President Clinton, Secretary Clinton ( the list goes on) are in town. More so, we connect our members to opportunities to work or intern with elected officials. One of our members is currently interning with Congressman Deutch. We also have a great relationship with the Patrick Murphy Campaign, among so many others. We also try to maintain a good relationship with our local elected officials and those running for office.

UP: How many active members do you have?

TV: We have 32 due paying members! Although, it is not necessary to pay dues in order to be a part of the club. Many members just enjoy coming to our weekly General Body Meetings and volunteering at events.

UP: How much are dues?

TV: Dues are a very reasonable $20 for the year. Of course we do not turn down right-leaning students. We are affiliated with the Democratic Party and strive to get Democrats elected. So there is no need to be registered as a Democrat or to agree with the entire party platform. Students who consider themselves to be Republicans, or lean right but want to get politically involved can join the College Republicans who might be more in tune with their ideological beliefs. However, we do reach out to our friends on the other side of the isle. Later this year we plan on having a bi-partisan kickball game with the Young Republicans.

UP: When and where are your meetings?

TV: We meet every Monday in the Palmetto Palm Room from 7 p.m.-8 p.m. for our General Meetings. We also carpool together to DEC meetings the first Thursday of each month, and we’ll have special events 1-2 [times] a month. Anyone who identifies as a Democrat, progressive or liberal is welcome to sit in on our meetings. However, there are obvious perks to paying dues. Due-paying members are able to travel with us to conferences or trips. However, most of our members pay dues because they understand how that money goes to different activities.

UP: Generally, how would you describe club interactions with FAU Republicans? In other words, is there any sort of rivalry?

TV: We are friends with some of the members of the College Republicans, it is great having students that we can have competitive debate with. Contrary to popular belief, there is less of a rivalry between the clubs as one may think. Overall we are both just glad to see people our age getting involved in the political process.

UP: Is there anything else about your club that the average person wouldn’t expect?

TV: I think that most people would expect that the people in the club join because they are already politically active, or at least study political science in school. This is actually not the truth. We have members that come from all over the spectrum. The interests of many of our members are as diverse as business, computer science, math, music, etc. Many of the members are attracted to the club because of the issues that they are concerned with are being addressed at our club’s GBMs.

UP: Is there anything you would say to students that may be on the fence about joining FAU College Democrats?

TB: I would say, just do it. Come to a meeting or two and see what you think. There is absolutely nothing to lose and so much to gain. Not only has this club created some great friendships, but there are so many opportunities and experience that can be life changing. This is a club that really encourages leaders to hone their leadership skills. Because we have the right to, we have a duty to involve ourselves in our community whichever useful way we can. To quote a great president of ours:

“The best way to enhance freedom in other lands is to demonstrate here that our Democratic system is worthy of emulation.” — Franklin D. Roosevelt

For more information on FAU College Democrats, check them out on their Owl Central page or on Facebook.

Brittany Ferrendi is the features editor of the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet her @BFerrendi.