On September 28th, Supporting Women in Political Science (SWIPS) partnered with IGNITE TXST to host a meeting with San Marcos Councilmembers Melissa Derrick and Alyssa Garza. Nearly 20 people attended the meeting, including the two councilmembers, three SWIPS officers, the IGNITE TXST president, and Dr. Lamm.
The Councilmembers began by speaking on their experience running for office. Regarding her campaign, Ms. Derrick advocated for maintaining an active social media presence and building strong connections. Meanwhile, Ms. Garza emphasized the importance of community-building to her campaign—despite her campaign being “last-minute,” she still rallied support from groups she had organized with through her education advocacy. Both councilmembers also highlighted the importance of intersectional organizing.
The councilmembers also spoke on their experience as women in office. Ms. Derrick insisted that women must advocate their positions vigorously and refuse to tolerate condescension. Ms. Garza spoke about the importance of family and mentors as valuable support systems in helping navigate particularly difficult political quandaries. Finally, the councilmembers concluded by discussing their current policy initiatives.
SWIPS is a nonpartisan women’s organization at Texas State University. They are a professional education and development organization centered around aiding political science majors and other students with exploring all facets of political science so they may discover their professional and academic interests. SWIPS meets every other Tuesday at 6:30PM via Zoom.
If you’re interested in joining the organization or finding out more, you can contact SWIPS President Jessica Myers at jlm538@txstate.edu.
