Duke University offers course for nurses, midwives looking to enter politics

Course’s goal is to teach health care workers how to run for offices up and down the ballot

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Area nurses demanding the government declare a nationwide nursing shortage

Have you ever thought you’d be better at making policy than the people currently in charge, but you don’t know how to run for office? Duke University might be able to help.

Applications are now being accepted for the university’s Campaign School for Nurses & Midwives. The program, running May 24-27, is a collaboration between Healing Politics and the Polis: Center for Politics at Duke’s Sanford School of Public Policy.

Healing Politics is an educational, nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)3 organization whose mission, its website states, is “to inspire, motivate, recruit, & train nurses & midwives to run for elected office up & down the ballot while building a culture of civic engagement within the professions.”

For nurses who are qualified to run for office, Healing Politics builds a community around the candidates and provides training to help them win.

The inaugural Campaign School will accept 50 students from diverse geographic, political, racial, cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, and will focus on:

  • Campaign planning
  • Campaign budgeting
  • Campaign structure and organization
  • Messaging and communications strategy
  • Media training: speeches and interviews
  • Campaign finance
  • Ethics
  • Fundraising
  • Voter contact strategy
  • Grassroots organizing
  • Get Out the Vote (GOTV)

The $895 tuition covers all meals during the 3½ days, but not your hotel in or transportation to Durham, North Carolina. In addition to the tuition, participants are asked to raise $200 within 30 days of completing the course. Fundraising is an important part of any campaign, and by donating the money they learn to raise, students help to keep down the cost of the program.

Those interested in applying for the course can do so on the Healing Politics website.

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