As a government major and women’s and gender studies minor, Beth DiSciullo (COL ’12) puts both to practice as president of the Women in Politics club. Involved since her freshman year, DiSciullo enjoys not only planning events and outreach programs for the group, but also attending weekly meetings and baking cookies for the club’s events. Before coming to Georgetown, DiSciullo was sure that she wanted to be a history major, but then she realized she was interested in women’s and gender studies, thanks to her involvement with the Women in Politics club.

What woman in politics do you admire the most?

I’d say my senator from Maryland, Barbara Mikulski, because she’s been such a powerful woman in the Senate for so long, and she’s done a lot for women’s health and education issues.

How did you get involved with the Women in Politics Club?

[During my] freshman year at the SAC fair, the girls seemed like a welcoming group. First year I worked on committee with the board and helped plan an Open Mic Night. Sophomore year, I thought it’d be cool to start a newsletter and have members write articles. We actually had a really great committee, we met every week, and luckily we had someone on our team with formatting experience. Then we decided to turn the newsletter into a website where we’d write blog entries. Even though we had a very basic website, we wanted it to be a discussion forum for members of our club. This year we’re revamping it so a girl in the club is working on the layout of the homepage.

What about the club has made you stay?

It’s hands down the people in the club. It is one of the main clubs I stuck with since freshman year, because [with] most clubs you go to freshman year the seniors talk about all of the rules and all of the hierarchies, but with this club the seniors were all so welcoming. We had meetings at their houses and wanted to plan events, and every year we’ve gotten more and more great freshmen and sophomores in the club.

What sort of events do you plan?

Every year in March for Women’s History Month we do a Women’s Week. Freshman year we had an Open Mic Night, and we usually have a keynote speaker. Last year we co-sponsored a lot of events with College Democrats. We are a nonpartisan group though. During Women’s Week we also have a networking event, which sounds kind of stuffy but it’s actually not. What we do is bring in our alumni in the DC area, and a pretty small group of five or six women come and talk about career advice and anything you want to talk about. It’s also really fun because we get to help bake and make food before [it].

What’s your favorite thing to bake?

Chocolate chip cookies.

How have your studies played into your club activities, and vice versa?

I have one class that’s exclusively political theory, and I think that will be my concentration. Doing these things day to day in the club gives me a better perspective of what I’m learning in class. We’re actually talking about things in the news and planning discussions, so it adds on to what I’m learning in the classroom. Another cool thing with the women’s and gender studies minor is that the professors are interesting to reach out to for club events.

What was your favorite class at Georgetown?

It was the class that made me decide to do the women’s and gender studies minor: Women in the Making of Modern America. I really like U.S. history, and it completely changed the way I thought about history, so after taking that class it drew me to other women and gender studies classes.

Does the women’s center play a role in your club? Are women’s empowerment groups around campus a close-knit community?

I actually have a meeting with the women’s center on Friday. They’re really open to co-sponsoring events. They work with the women’s clubs on campus and put together a big calendar so we can all advertise each other’s events. It’s a great resource and a great body to bring clubs together, and we all really have the same goals in mind.

How can people get involved in the club?

There is a general membership meeting this Sunday at 5:30 p.m. in Kennedy Multipurpose Room. We’ll have food and talk about this upcoming semester.

Are there any boys in the club?

[Laughs] Not at the moment, but we’d love if any interested boys joined!