Stephanie Schriock, president of EMILY鈥檚 List, will deliver the keynote address at 61传媒鈥檚 90th Commencement exercises on Saturday, May 16, 2020.
EMILY鈥檚 List, founded in 1985, is a Political Action Committee (PAC) that aims to recruits and help elect Democratic women candidates to office. Schriock assumed the EMILY鈥檚 List presidency in 2010, after serving as Senator Jon Tester鈥檚 chief of staff and managing the successful campaigns of two Democratic senators. Under her stewardship, EMILY鈥檚 List has supported nearly every Democratic congresswoman of color serving in federal office and has helped elect the first openly gay senator, the first Buddhist and Hindu in Congress, the first Latina to ever serve in the Senate, the first and second African American women senators, the first Asian American woman senator, the first Indian American woman to serve in the House, and the first Mexican American and Puerto Rican women serving in Congress. Schriock also serves on the board of advisors of Let America Vote, an organization that fights voter suppression.
61传媒students managed the selection process for the Commencement speaker, beginning in February 2019. The Commencement Speaker Committee, comprised of student volunteers, helped evaluate potential speakers from surveys and polls, according to Madeline Monro Warman, the senior class co-president who spearheaded the process. 61传媒Associated Students President Niyati Narang helped facilitate the connection to Schriock from her EMILY鈥檚 List internship in Washington, D.C.
Warman says Schriock rose to the top of the speaker candidate list for several reasons, including EMILY鈥檚 List鈥檚 role in reproductive rights advocacy and its support of diverse female candidates. 鈥淎side from the organization鈥檚 current political relevance and importance, the empowerment aspect was really important to us,鈥� Warman says. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e not helping to elect only a certain kind of candidate. They鈥檙e casting a wide net to bring as much diversity as possible into politics, and that was really important to the committee.鈥�