Five members of the Virginia General Assembly who graduated from the University participated in a legislator forum held in Wilson Hall last night.
Sponsored by the Student Council Legislative Affairs Committee, the forum consisted of alumni serving in both the House of Delegates and the Senate. Del William H. Fralin, Jr. (R-Roanoke), Del. Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond), Del. David Toscano (D-Charlottesville), Sen. Jeannemarie Devolites Davis (R-Vienna) and Sen. Mark Herring (D-Leesburg) were all in attendance.
According to Legislative Affairs Committee co-chair Todd Eley, a third-year College student, this is the first time a forum consisting exclusively of University alumni legislators has been held. Eley said he was pleased with the event and hopes to hold another forum next year.
"I think [this forum] was pretty successful, and we hope to make it an annual event," Eley said.
The legislators responded to questions posed by Eley and also participated in an open question-and-answer session with the audience. Topics included the legislators' time at the University, education and transportation issues.
McClellan described her time at the University as the beginning of her political career, and stressed the need for students to get involved in politics for themselves.
"In this very room [Wilson 402] I presided over a Young Democrats Convention," McClellan said, and mentioned her work in the offices of various political figures. "They teach you government here, but they don't teach the ins and outs and how it works on a daily basis," she said.
In regard to education, Davis emphasized the generosity of alumni in giving back to the school.
"U.Va. has done an excellent job of putting money into scholarships for students who can't pay," she said.
The growing problem of traffic in Northern Virginia was also addressed by members of the panel.
"The traffic is absolutely horrendous!" Herring said. "We are home to the second worst traffic in the nation. Nobody wants to raise taxes, but if it's the only way to address the traffic needs of Northern Virginia, we need to be responsible ... and make a significant new investment."
Other steps necessary to battle the traffic problem were also mentioned. For instance, Fralin discussed the need to look at land use and McClellan called for the creation of mass transit for the Richmond area.
Despite their differing views, several legislators mentioned their common love of the University.
"I'm really proud to be here" at the University, Fralin said. "You're at a special place. Virginia is a special place."
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