The College Democrats received confirmation Wednesday from the Democratic National Committee that they will be the first College Democrats chapter in the country to host DNC chairman Howard Dean. Dean will come to Columbia some time in February, although due to scheduling difficulties the Democrats were unable to confirm an exact date.

“We don’t know what day he’s going to come and speak because his schedule is made up closer to when he speaks,” said Jonathan Backer, CC ’10 and media director of the College Democrats. “His schedule is up in the air because of the primaries,” said Josh Lipsky, CC ’08 and president of the College Democrats. “Depending on what happens in Iowa and New Hampshire depends on when exactly he can come.”

The Democrats said that they believe that they embody the spirit of activism Dean spoke of in his 2004 failed presidential campaign. “We’re going to places like Ohio and Virginia and campaigning in places where democrats have trouble,” Backer said. “We’re becoming the youth arm of the 50-State Strategy, we think, and we want to hear more about the 50-State Strategy and how we can help.”

“I said to them, we’re the chapter of the year. The chairman of the party should come speak here—it’s not complicated and they agreed,” Lipsky said.

In addition, yesterday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., a group of Dems stood behind three tables on Low Library Plaza, encouraging students to sign petitions and trying to raise awareness of recent price increases of oral contraceptives. The price increase for Columbia students came about because of the scrapping of a federal subsidy in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005.

“It used to be when the University sent students to get birth control from pharmacies, [it was] subsidized for students. When that got screwed up, students stopped getting subsidies. Prices for universities went up—Barnard stocked up on birth control—prices stayed the same. Columbia did not protect their students from this change,” Sarah Leonard, CC ’10 and Dems lead activist said.

Joshua Chambers can be reached at news@columbiaspectator.com.