Students form club for Obama campaign

BY JOSEPH BUSTOS SVN REPORTER jbustos@svnmail.com STERLING - Winning an election requires a lot of grassroots campaigning. At Sterling High School, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama is getting a hand in his bid for the presidency from some burgeoning young politicos. After some students expressed interest in supporting the Chicago Democrat, about 15 juniors and seniors formed their own chapter of Students for Barack Obama. "They saw I was wearing a button, and they decided it would be a cool thing to have a club," said club sponsor and history teacher Elroy Wylde. The club has met after school twice so far, and as the school year comes to an end, the dedicated members plan to continue meet over the summer and make fliers. "The students need to take the lead from here on," Wylde said. He recommends the students go to Iowa at caucus time, to knock on doors and campaign. "If you get organized, you'll have a chance" to win, he said. "I think you would have a lot of fun meeting people knocking on doors." Senior Conner Wasson wears his Obama '08 button every day, hoping to spur some discussion about the Harvard Law school graduate. "I have a big problem with the way things are going today," Conner said, referring to the war in Iraq and anti-gay-marriage campaigns. Conner believes Obama can foster cooperation between the two main parties. "The difference between him and the rest of the Democrats is his willingness to go across the aisle and work with Republicans," Conner said. Chelsea Kinnaman, a senior, is leaning toward supporting Obama in next year's primaries, but is still learning about his stances on issues. She an occasional follower of politics, but her main issues are getting out of Iraq and providing universal health care, both of which Obama support. "I don't know much about him, but I like the way he speaks," Chelsea said. Wylde is an Obama supporter, but he wouldn't mind seeing other clubs form in the school for other candidates of all political persuasions. Wylde wants to see students debate the issues and talk about who they think would do the best job as president. "Kids need to be political," Wylde said. "There are so many things that will affect them. They need to be interested." Reach Joseph Bustos at (815) 625-3600 or (800) 798-4085, ext. 529.