Leadership lived: Student's passion for politics grows at UIS

Marc Reiter has always had a passion for politics.

“I’ve probably been a political junkie since I was about 11-years-old, so I’ve always followed it – policy, elections, and all that stuff I just find it fascinating," said Reiter.

The junior political science major at the University of Illinois Springfield is now president of the College Democrats on campus.

“We have political candidates come speak to us, we campaign, we work for those candidates, we learn about the political process, we learn what it means to have Democratic ideals and beliefs,” said Reiter.

He’s also president of the Amnesty International group, a senator on the Student Government Association, and Speaker of the House for the state-wide Model Illinois Government organization.

“It’s definitely, from my position, given me a lot of leadership experience. A lot of the stuff takes a lot of planning, organization, and teamwork,” he said.

Through his involvement with the Model United Nations chapter on campus, Reiter was able to travel to New York City. He learned about creating resolutions and diplomacy.

“The last day you actually get to go to the U.N. building in New York and get to stand on the floor, so it’s a pretty cool experience,” said Reiter.

After he graduates with his bachelor’s degree, Reiter plans to stay at UIS to obtain his master’s degree in political science.

“Then I would like to either move out to California or Washington, D.C. to work for a congressman or something like that. I think that would be a really interesting thing," he said.