Shepherd students conduct town hall with Manchin & Hogan in DC

PRESS RELEASE

Washington, DC – Shepherd University students traveled with the Stubblefield Institute for Civil Political Communications on Tuesday, February 17, to attend a town hall with former U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (I-WV) and former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan. The town hall was led by Steve Scully, host of “The Briefing” on SiriusXM POTUS Channel 124, SiriusXM’s bipartisan political channel. The topic of the discussion was polarization in our politics and the growing political divide.

Prior to his time as senator, Manchin served as governor of West Virginia. During the town hall presentation, Manchin and Hogan reflected on their experiences working with the National Governors Association. Each of them took a turn as chair of this hundred-year-old bipartisan organization. In the context of the NGA, governors have historically worked together, sharing information and celebrating successful programs in all states. Manchin and Hogan both expressed that it is important to continue to remember not just that we have worked together, as a nation, in the past — but also to remember the ways in which we have worked together.

Students participating in the town hall included those majoring in Communications, Political Science, and Business, as well as members of the Stubblefield Institute Student Fellows program. In preparation for their opportunity to ask questions at the town hall, the students spent the early part of the day talking with professionals in media and political communication.

At George Washington University, students visited the GWU television studio and heard from Peter Loge, Director of the Project on Ethics in Political Communication. Loge drew on political thought throughout the centuries as he encouraged the students to prepare for their careers by thinking ahead.

“The time to decide your ethical line is not when you are asked to do something that might be unethical,” Loge said. “You need to decide before that. You need to decide now.”

The next speaker was lobbyist Peter Leon. Professional lobbying is one of the many career paths that students of political communication may consider. Leon talked about his

experience as someone who has made a career out of being paid to educate and persuade those working in government.

C-SPAN was the next stop on the students’ journey. Here they toured the studios with C-SPAN Associates who are recent graduates of their respective schools. Peter Kiley, a senior staff member, then led a discussion of how the non-profit and non-partisan news agency continues to serve its modern audience, including its expansion to YouTube TV, social media platforms, and the C-SPAN Now app.

At lunch, students met with journalist Hoppy Kercheval and with communications strategists from Global Strategy Group.

From GSG, Jade Floyd, Angela Kuefler, and Rosa Mendoza spoke about their career paths, the work they do, and the ways they meet the political research challenges of today. While some traditional polling methods meet new difficulties as technology and trust have changed, other tools have been developed to help understand public sentiment.

“The roundtable discussion provided us with insight into how firms help people understand what issues are important to them,” said Josiah Wink, a senior Political Science major. “The work is a combination of presenting statistical data in a digestible format and creating language that is usable in future qualitative studies. A general takeaway I received from Jade is to picture you are trying to explain this to an apolitical family member, or a grandparent; the main points lack clarity if they cannot understand the argument.”

Shepherd University Faculty Member Dr. Matthew Kushin accompanied the students, along with Stubblefield Institute staff members. Stubblefield Institute Program Coordinator Graham Scott expressed appreciation for the collaborative effort it takes to organize this type of event.

“This day trip introduced Shepherd University students to leading academics, media organizations, political communication professionals, and former elected officials,” said Scott. “I appreciate that the Institute’s network of champions for civil political communication helped to arrange these opportunities.”

This network included past Stubblefield Institute National Civility Award recipients Hogan and C-SPAN, and Stubblefield Institute board members Floyd, Kercheval, Kushin, Loge, Scully, and Wink.

Shepherd University is located in the eastern panhandle of West Virginia, adjacent to the Potomac River. Currently, West Virginia is a super-majority Republican state, with the governor, state senate, and state house of delegates all led by Republicans. Just one bridge away, Maryland is a super-majority Democrat state. Centered along this

geographical and political divide, the Stubblefield Institute engages with political leaders, faculty, students, university staff, community members, and people across West Virginia and across the United States to explore respectful and productive political conversations.

The Town Hall event will air in its entirety from 1-2 p.m., Monday, February 23, 2026, on SiriusXM POTUS Channel 124 or listen anytime on the SiriusXM app.