Kevin Harris - Washington, DC

I have had amazing experiences since completing the Yes We Can Program. Though many of my campaign activities were already underway once the program started, the training was incredibly useful in helping me to become more effective in the things I was already doing to help elect Democrats.

Before, during and after the training, I worked simultaneously on two mayoral races. One race was near my hometown in Birmingham, Alabama, where I worked as a senior media advisor and press secretary. Here, the training was incredibly helpful in enhancing my ability to manage the press and advise the candidate on the best techniques and mediums he should use to present himself and his policy proposals to the electorate. The training exercise in which we planned and coordinated the schedule of a candidate during the critical last weeks of a campaign, was a huge help in this position. This simulation was a wonderful introduction to the things I had to plan and coordinate for my candidate in days and weeks leading up to Election Day. I knew how to prioritize clearly and when and where the candidate should be to get maximum coverage from the local media.

The second campaign I worked for was in Washington DC, where I did advanced volunteer work for a leading candidate in the race. Here, I worked with field coordinators to target voters and plan events for the candidate to attend. The training sessions devoted to the world of targeting, gave me a critically important overview of the things I needed to help this candidate. The training introduced me to campaign language that made it easier for me to communicate with the field coordinators so that I could best serve them and the candidate.

Currently, I am working for a direct mail consulting firm committed to electing qualified Democrats across the country. Among my many duties, is assisting one of the firm's partners in researching and developing direct mail plans. I work to establish what the message should be for the pieces, depending on what's happening on the ground and poll data. I also work to determine what messages should be mailed and communicated to voters and how that could be done best with our mail plan. With this position, the training sessions on message, targeting and mail were of critical use. Because of the training, I had no problem sitting with my boss and clients to discuss these issues. The training gave me a wonderful basis of knowledge that allowed me to adjust to my current duties quicker than had I not been fortunate enough to participate.

I would definitely recommend this program to others.