Bridge USA
BridgeUSA is a national multi-partisan open political discussion group that hosts public events on college and high school campuses across the U.S. to promote conversations on current events from people of all backgrounds and viewpoints. The Cal Poly Chapter of BridgeUSA was started in spring 2023. In the last three years that BridgeUSA has been active on Cal Poly's campus, we have been able to host countless discussions on all important subject matters pressing the world today, ranging from talks on the Isreal and Palestine conflicts to the most recent Presidential election. The meetings focus on subject matters that our participants feel are relevant and encourage approaching the topics at hand from all viewpoints. The Wall Street Journal came to Cal Poly's campus in Spring of 2024 to sit in on one of our discussion events and interview participants on their experiences, later publishing an article titled "Far From the Protests, Some Students Try to Meet in the Middle". The article and presence of BridgeUSA gained more attention on behalf of the organization leading to articles from other major news sources like The New York Times focusing on the work being done on other college campuses around the nation. National shoutouts from political figureheads, including former President Barack Obama, have also applauded the work being done by BridgeUSA nationally in encouraging open, multi-partisan political discussions in a time of unprecedented political division and turmoil in the U.S.
The work being done by BridgeUSA nationally is more important now than ever, and the support we have received from Cal Poly has been amazing! We are currently looking for future leadership to carry on the legacy of BridgeUSA. If you are interested in possibly fulfilling these values and would like to serve on the board of BridgeUSA in the upcoming year, please reach out to me, Madison Mairs, via email (mmairs@calpoly.edu) and follow @bridgeusa.slo on Instagram for updates! Keep an eye out for meetings starting up again this Spring/next Fall and reach out if you have any interest in serving as a club leader.
Socials
Follow @bridgeusa.slo on Instagram!
Contact
BridgeUSA, Cal Poly SLO Founder: Madison Mairs
mmairs@calpoly.edu