Rider’s Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics offers students like Jonathan frequent opportunities to hear and meet with major local, state and national political figures.
Why Jonathan chose Rider
“I went to Rider because I felt I would receive a top-notch education at a small school with a tight-knit community setting. Going there, I discovered Rider has world-class professors who care deeply about their students.”
Professor Dworkin’s New Jersey Politics class gave me an inside look at how the political game is played. I learned the nitty-gritty ‘ins and outs’ of New Jersey politics.
Chief of Staff for New Jersey Assemblyman Herb Conaway
Rider's impact on Jonathan's success
With the encouragement of his professors, Jonathan immediately became involved in student government, serving three years on the Student Senate and a year as SGA vice president. He also served as a delegate on Rider’s Model United Nations Team. “Working in student government provided a great training ground for me. I got to hear concerns and take those concerns to administrators. It helped me develop my leadership skills and gain experience serving others. On the Model UN team, I collaborated with students from Rider and across the nation, drafting legislation and coming to an agreement. Everything I did provided great experience and relates directly to what I do today.”
Key to Jonathan’s career was a class taught by Ben Dworkin, former director of Rider’s Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics. “Professor Dworkin’s New Jersey Politics class gave me an inside look at how the political game is played. I learned the nitty-gritty ‘ins and outs’ of New Jersey politics. Through that class and the Institute, I met power players from across the state and nation who came to Rider as guest speakers, lecturers and participants in panel discussions, debates and Brown Bag lunches.”
Continued success
One month after graduation — with the help of recommendations and phone calls from his Rider professors — Jonathan was hired as campaign manager for the Dumont Sturgeon Capodanno for Hamilton Council ticket. He spent the next two years working for U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg, (Democrat, N.J.), in Camden and Washington, D.C., in positions ranging from staff assistant to legislative correspondent and new media assistant. He is now chief of staff for New Jersey Assemblyman Herb Conaway. “I’ve always had an interest in politics. But Rider gave me the ability and the resources to pursue that goal. Without Rider University, I wouldn’t be where I am today.”