In Los Angeles, California labor and community organizations have long-recognized the need for a joint campaign training program — a program that would include both in-class and field training components.
That’s exactly what took place the weekend of April 5-6, 2008, when over 25 community and labor activists, including PBN reps, gained the skills needed to run an efficient electoral field program at this year’s Campaign School.
The Campaign School successfully engaged and activated everyone who attended through helpful skills-building trainings facilitated by staff and leadership from the LA County Federation of Labor, UCLA Labor Center, LA Trade Tech Labor Studies Center, and PBN California partner, SCOPE.
The School then developed the skills of participants by providing trainings in the following key areas:
- The Big Picture: Understanding the political landscape surrounding our work: What is the issue? Why do we do what we do? Why is it important? What will it take to win?
- Developing Campaign Strategies and Plans: Understanding the basics components of effective electoral field programs including strategy development, key staff roles, recruiting allies and volunteers, overall timelines, and action planning.
- Audience Targeting: Who will receive our message?
- Message Development: How do we move our target audience?
- Message Delivery: Overview of the most effective methods such as one-on-one trainings, door-to-door outreach, phoning, and worksite visits.
- Volunteer Recruitment and Management: How to recruit volunteers and keep them engaged and active.
- Logistics: What are the mechanics of a campaign? What are the technical components?
- Training Volunteers: How to train for precinct walks, phone banks, presentations, worksite activities, etc.
- Results Tracking: Why is it so important? What are the important pieces for tracking? What tools & techniques are needed for effective tracking and evaluation of results?
The 2008 Campaign School proved to be an invaluable experience, not just for myself, but for everyone involved. Campaign School fulfilled its goal of increasing the internal political capacity of statewide alliance-affiliated labor unions, community organizations, and other partners left feeling confident that they could successfully train and deploy teams of field organizers, telephone campaigners and canvassers, and more, during volunteer mobilizations.
(Pictured above: Sharon Delugach, Staff Director of UCLA Labor Center, presenting at 2008 Campaign School.)
