For the general student population, contact with legislators doesn’t go beyond watching them on TV or reading about them in the news. But, for Lindsay Novak, a Carlson School of Management undergraduate, that wasn’t good enough. “I saw him at my little brother’s football game and I knew I had to approach him,” said Novak of her first meeting Minnesota Chief of Staff David Gaither. “I wanted the opportunity to raise visibility and encourage legislative support for the Carlson School’s undergraduate program expansion, which includes plans for a new building. I asked him if he would be willing to meet with me and he was very impressed that I took the initiative to ask, so he quickly accepted my proposal.” To meet increasing demand for a business education, the Carlson School plans to expand its Undergraduate program to serve 50 percent more students by 2008. Currently, the Carlson School can only serve 12 percent of students who apply, turning away many of the state’s brightest students who then often leave the state altogether. By expanding, the school can keep hundreds of top students engaged in the state’s economy. The Carlson School is asking lawmakers for $26.6 million as part of the University's 2006 Capital Request.

Students rallying at the Capitol. Pictured left to right: Laura Osborne, Katherine Davis, Lindsay Novak.

A few weeks later, Novak met Gaither at his office. They began the meeting by discussing the goals of the Carlson School and the University’s bonding request, which Gaither undoubtedly supported. Novak also talked about student life at the Carlson School and the many organizations the students are involved in. Novak is involved in Women in Business, the accounting club Beta Alpha Psi, and the Carlson School Ambassador Program. The Ambassador program is a selective organization that provides high-profile students the opportunity to give back to both the University of Minnesota and the local community. The ambassadors serve as student representatives at committee meetings, interact with legislators, deans, and corporate and community members, and plan and organize special events. Recently, Novak joined fellow ambassadors as they marched up the stairs at the Carlson School’s Day at the Capitol event. The student ambassadors donned business suits, backpacks, and carried picket signs asking legislators to support funding for the expansion.