The Columbia University College Democrats are as strong as our members are active. We offer many leadership opportunities and a lot of freedom within our four part organization, which includes the Executive Board, the Activist Council, the General Body, and our Umbrella Groups.

The Executive Board is the primary decision-making and coordinating body of the Columbia Democrats, pursuing the goals of entire group while ensuring that all facets of the organization are working smoothly. You can contact the board at dems@columbia.edu.

The Activist Council organizes many of our large annual events, from our campaign trip to our on-campus activist events. The AC is a consensus-based organizing group coordinated by four elected Lead Activists. General body members are also actively involved and regularly attend meetings. Contact the Activist Council at ac.cudems@gmail.com.

Umbrella Groups are smaller groups organized within the Columbia Democrats umbrella. Umbrella groups allow members of the organization who aren’t on the Executive Board to take on leadership roles by pursuing their particular goals with organizational and monetary support from the Dems. Current Umbrella Groups include:

• CU Dems Progressive Caucus – Jonathan Backer, Director
• Women’s Caucus – Maddy Joseph, Director
• Queer Caucus – Barry Weinberg, Director

The General Body includes members of every branch of the Columbia Democrats as well as members who come to only a few meetings or events each year. The General Body checks Executive Board decisions and is in charge of electing members to the E-Board every spring.

The Columbia Democrats also have a close working relationship with the Roosevelt Institution, a progressive student-run think tank on Columbia’s campus. The Roosevelt Institution often conducts research for debates and events, as well as working on its own policy initiatives and an annual policy report. For more information on the Roosevelt Institution, please contact Nick Turner, Administrative Director.

The Executive Board
Kate O’Gorman, President
Avi Edelman, Vice President
Kaley Hanenkrat, Secretary
Linda Magana, Treasurer
Nancy Huemer, Media Director
Maddy Joseph, Membership Director
Ganiatu Afolabi, Outreach Director
Allison Grossman, Social and Alumni Affairs Director
Bridgit Donnelly, Speakers’ Coordinator
Matt Renick, Freshman Representative
Michael Rady, Freshman Representative
Sam Klug, Lead Activist
Stephen Davan, Lead Activist
Sean Quirk, Lead Activist
Helen Kilian, Lead Activist
Michael Spitzer-Rubenstein, Webmaster