UWO alumna returns to campus each June to chair American Legion Auxiliary Badger Girls State

Danyelle "Dany" Thompson jokes about using vacation time from her fulltime job to volunteer as chair of American Legion Auxiliary Badger Girls State-and spending a week residing in a dorm at her alma mater, the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.

Badger Girls State, with nearly 500 student delegates and about 60 volunteers, have taken over UWO this week as the incoming high school senior girls take in an immersive civic engagement opportunity as they participate in mock government activities.

Thompson, who earned a UWO bachelor's degree in English in 2004, went on to Grand Valley State in Michigan to earn a master's degree in higher education administration. She held a variety of positions in higher education in states around the Midwest.

"I attended Badger Girls State (in 1997, it was held on the UW-Madison campus), and it was life-changing for me," she said, adding she did not go into it thinking of herself as a leader. Someone nominated her for a city office and she won the seat. The Badger Girls State experience helped her find newfound poise and a develop a level of self-assurance that wasn't there before.

"I took that with me to college," she said, explaining how that new- found confidence led to residence hall leadership roles.

Dedicated chairman

After her year as a delegate, she came back the next as a counselor, marking the start of 27 years in that role.

In the early 2000s, she helped the transition from UW-Madison to the UW-Oshkosh campus. She's currently in her 8th year as chairman.

Thompson attended a small parochial all-girl high school in Milwaukee and decided to follow her older brother by attending college at UW-Oshkosh-something she called "very much a shock"

She came from a family of teachers and originally thought she would be a high school teacher. She learned teaching wasn't for her and changed her major to English, with a minor in Women's Studies. She lived in the former Clemans Hall, that stood on the site of the existing Horizon Village.

"I loved college," Thompson said. "I loved UWO. I loved being involved and meeting people from all over the state."

Thompson, who said she loved her classes, found the college experience helps students mature and regulate themselves. It's something she noticed as a Community Advisor and Residence Hall Advisor. Students learn to do their own laundry. They learn time management and they figure out how to handle problems when they arise.

In her professional life since college, she worked directing residence halls at Grand Valley State University, Missouri Western State University and UW-Oshkosh, where she worked nearly six years until March 2018. From there, she worked as a student conduct investigator at UW-Whitewater, director of Title IX and Compliance at UW-La Crosse, and her current role as a Title IX Compliance Specialist for the Universities of Wisconsin.

Each June, she takes a week of vacation to volunteer with Badger Girls State-the program that had given her confidence she didn't know she had. She can see herself in the girls attending each year and she hopes they will use the experience as a springboard for their own futures.

"For Badger Girls State, there are two main goals," she said, "encouraging more women to run for office and teaching civic responsibility."

Thompson said as part of their immersive experience, delegates are taught how to run for offices (within the model government), told about the importance of voting and the importance of going to school board meetings and simply being involved in local government. at the start of the week students were divided into "Federalist" or "Nationalist" parties and Thompson appreciates the policy discussions and debate that take place regarding education, agriculture, the environment, taxes and more.

A popular College and Career Fair was packed with delegates and booths from around 40 colleges, universities and representatives of the military. The Fair was extended this year after past delegates said it was not long enough.

"These are the girls you want coming to your college," Thompson said.

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UWO hosts Badger Girls State; nearly 500 take part in immersive government experience