BHS grad studies politics at retreat

Ashly Murphy, a 2000 graduate of Boerne High School, is taking steps to change the world, starting with her college campus.

Murphy was one of 39 college students from Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana selected for an Americans for Informed Democracy retreat earlier this month.

"I'm very interested in encouraging dialogue in a non-partisan venue," said Murphy, a senior political science major at the University of Houston. "People are so divided now, but they're not sure of the issues that divide them."

She said it is important for people to have a safe place to discuss their thoughts on global issues, and to hear the ideas of others. During the retreat, students learned how to create such an environment on their own campuses.

Seth Green, executive director for AID, said the program was started by a group of American students studying abroad at Oxford University in England.

"We wanted to raise awareness about viewpoints in other countries, while combating anti-American sentiments," he said.

Now AID, based in New Haven, Conn., creates retreats for students all over the country. So far retreats have been held in Texas, Vermont and Berlin, Germany. The next retreat is planned for the Chicago area.

Murphy said she found out about the program through the pre-law fraternity at the University of Houston.

Now that she has been accepted and has completed the retreat, she will focus on organizing town hall meetings for students on her campus.

"It will be difficult because U of H is a commuter college, most people go home in the evenings, but I don't want to hold meetings during the day when people are in class," she said. "I think offering food will help. Also, the faculty at U of H are very friendly and they make allowances to help the students."

Murphy said students in the Boerne area can be on the lookout for AID town hall meetings at UTSA, which was one of the schools involved in the retreat.

Green said surveys have shown that Americans desire a moral foreign policy, yet few know how to go about it.

"Americans greatly care about doing right by the rest of the world," he said. "If people have a better understanding of the world, it's amazing what good can come out of it."

For more information visit www.aidemocracy.org.

Email Jessica Sanders at jessicasanders@boernestar.com.