WEST HAVEN – Simone E. Quartey is a registered Democrat and grew up in a liberal family. The University of New Haven junior, however, will be spending the last two weeks of August in Tampa, Fla., attending the Republican National Convention. Simone Quartey's blog will be published at nhregsiter.com. A political science major from  Highland Mills, N.Y., Quartey was selected for a UNH scholarship to attend the Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars, an independent, nonprofit organization serving hundreds of colleges and universities in the United States and other countries by providing selected students challenging opportunities to work and learn in Washington, D.C., for academic credit. She will participate in a two-week course examining the role of national political conventions in the process of nominating and electing a party’s candidates for president and vice president for the United States. The Washington Center program provides students not only with seminars but also places them in volunteer fieldwork positions with the party, convention committee, host committee, media and others. The Republican National Convention takes place from Aug. 27-30. Quartey had her choice of going either to the GOP convention or to the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C. Sept. 3-6. “I’ve been around progressive politics all my life and now I wanted to be involved with something new,” she says. “I think the Democratic convention is just going to be a formality naming the incumbent. When I chose the Republican convention, I thought it might be fractious but even though there is a preferred candidate, I think it will be interesting. I’m thrilled to be going.” While she is there, Quartey will be blogging about her observations and the New Haven Register will link to her blog. Quartey says she has never worked for a candidate but has avidly watched conventions and follows election news.  She hopes to eventually become an attorney and perhaps become a political consultant. “I don’t really want to run for office myself,” Quartey says. “But I’d like to cultivate and tutor people who are talented and have solution-based goals.” Quartey, who is working closely with Gary Fetzer, a lecturer in political science at UNH, is receiving support to take part in the program from Academic Affairs, Student Affairs and Enrollment Management. Additional funding came from a stipend given to President Steven H. Kaplan when he received the William M. Burke Presidential Award for Experiential Education by the National Society for Experiential Education (NSEE) earlier this year.

By Ed Stannard, Community Engagement Editor
estannard@nhregister.com / Twitter: @edstannardnhr, @nhrvoices

It’s time to pay a visit to our Community Media Lab. You might be surprised at who you’ll find.

Do have a loved one with autism? Do you care about increasing literacy among our youth? Are you interested in sustainable farming? Our newest bloggers are passionate about those topics.

Shirley Blaier-Stein has a son with autism. She left her career as a lawyer to care for him, wrote a book called “Autism Mother,” and writes a blog called Autism Parents Community. We’re thrilled to add her blog to our media lab, offering those who love people with autism support and information.

It’s well known that literacy is vital to success in school and the job market. The Literacy Coalition of Greater New Haven is a group of volunteers aiming to increase the ability of both children and adults to read. If you’ve considered volunteering to be a tutor, the Literacy Coalition is the place to call. And to stay abreast of what the organization is doing, bookmark Literacy, Every Day.

Melissa Waldron runs the blog Fertile Ground USA, whose motto is “Farming is a Transformative Act.” The site is chock full of information about the sustainable-agriculture movement, including urban farming.

Some of our other bloggers are promoting a cause. Actually, one, Christopher Zurcher promotes several causes in three different blogs he maintains: PeaceNews, the Progress Action Roundtable and Connecticut Environmental Headlines.

And Zurcher is not the only environmental blogger. Others on our site include Green Cities, Blue Waters from the Connecticut Fund for the Environment and Yale Environment 360 by the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, as well as nature-oriented blogs such as Matthew Houskeeper’s Soundbounder and Nick Bonomo’s Shorebirder.

In politics, our bloggers read from left to right: Aldon Hynes’ Orient Lodge and Andrew Rose’s Political Insomniac, to name two.

Our bloggers’ coverage enhances the news and features the Register’s reporters bring you every day, and we’re always interested in adding local bloggers — or helping you start a blog — who have a passion to share.

Sports. The Arts. Even a blog about Charles Dickens movies. You’ll be surprised at what you’ll find at www.nhregister.com/blogs.

Let me or Angi Carter know if you’re interested in joining the Community Media Lab by emailing voices@nhregister.com. You can call me at 203-789-5743 and Angi at 203-789-5752. And check out OUR blog, Your Open Newsroom, and let us know what you think!