Born in Milwaukee and raised in Wauwatosa, Chris grew up with a strong connection to Wisconsin. While traveling throughout the state, he was introduced to the natural beauty of the Wisconsin countryside. This set the seeds for his continuing passion to protect the environment.
The son of a UW researcher and a small business owner, Chris was politically active at a young age. His first political memory is of knocking on doors for Tom Barrett. Having parents that belong to two different political parties, he learned the importance of connecting with people across the aisle.
After graduating from Pius XI high school, Chris enrolled at Northern Michigan University. After one academic year, Chris transferred to UW-Madison so that he could join the fight against Scott Walker’s attempt to eliminate collective bargaining. Watching Scott Walker’s actions impact his home state made Chris realize that he needed to return home.
Back in Wisconsin now, Chris immediately became involved in the recall effort; he campaigned across the state with gubernatorial candidate Kathleen Vinehout. Through his dedication to the recall effort, Chris gained the respect of his peers and was elected to chair the College Democrats of UW for the 2012-2013 academic year.
As chair, Chris energized his student organization to campaign heavily for Barack Obama, Tammy Baldwin, and Mark Pocan across campus in 2012. Moreover, Chris and the members of the College Democrats hosted the 2013 College Democrats of Wisconsin Convention. This was an opportunity to bring students into the political conversation and provide them with professional development. This showed Chris how the political process can benefit from the input of student ideas.
Hoping to increase student involvement in local government, Chris sought out a position on the Dane County Environmental Council. This appointment was his first introduction to County government. Through these experiences, he learned about the wonderful environmental work, such as collaborating with friend groups and municipalities, that is done to improve access to our natural resources and to clean up our lakes.
Tying his two passions for environmental work and student inclusion, Chris ran in the 2013 Associated Students of Madison election on a platform to increase campus sustainability. He won a spot as a representative in the College of Letters and Sciences and went on to sit on the Sustainability Committee. He championed the recently formed Green Fund, which was created to increase student-led sustainability initiatives across campus.
This May, Chris will be graduating from UW with a degree in political science and a certificate in environmental studies. Come May, he looks forward to increasing student involvement in the Dane County community. He wants to actively expand environmental work throughout the county and increase cooperation between Dane County Sheriffs, Madison and UW police on campus and county safety issues.
The son of a UW researcher and a small business owner, Chris was politically active at a young age. His first political memory is of knocking on doors for Tom Barrett. Having parents that belong to two different political parties, he learned the importance of connecting with people across the aisle.
After graduating from Pius XI high school, Chris enrolled at Northern Michigan University. After one academic year, Chris transferred to UW-Madison so that he could join the fight against Scott Walker’s attempt to eliminate collective bargaining. Watching Scott Walker’s actions impact his home state made Chris realize that he needed to return home.
Back in Wisconsin now, Chris immediately became involved in the recall effort; he campaigned across the state with gubernatorial candidate Kathleen Vinehout. Through his dedication to the recall effort, Chris gained the respect of his peers and was elected to chair the College Democrats of UW for the 2012-2013 academic year.
As chair, Chris energized his student organization to campaign heavily for Barack Obama, Tammy Baldwin, and Mark Pocan across campus in 2012. Moreover, Chris and the members of the College Democrats hosted the 2013 College Democrats of Wisconsin Convention. This was an opportunity to bring students into the political conversation and provide them with professional development. This showed Chris how the political process can benefit from the input of student ideas.
Hoping to increase student involvement in local government, Chris sought out a position on the Dane County Environmental Council. This appointment was his first introduction to County government. Through these experiences, he learned about the wonderful environmental work, such as collaborating with friend groups and municipalities, that is done to improve access to our natural resources and to clean up our lakes.
Tying his two passions for environmental work and student inclusion, Chris ran in the 2013 Associated Students of Madison election on a platform to increase campus sustainability. He won a spot as a representative in the College of Letters and Sciences and went on to sit on the Sustainability Committee. He championed the recently formed Green Fund, which was created to increase student-led sustainability initiatives across campus.
This May, Chris will be graduating from UW with a degree in political science and a certificate in environmental studies. Come May, he looks forward to increasing student involvement in the Dane County community. He wants to actively expand environmental work throughout the county and increase cooperation between Dane County Sheriffs, Madison and UW police on campus and county safety issues.
Paid and Authorized by Collegiates for Chris, Lizzy Schounard, Treasurer