NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — MCLA will host an Inclusive Democracy Election Panel this September that invites students and community members to explore ways to engage and improve our democracy.  

 

The panel will take place on Sept. 26 at 5 p.m. in Murdock Hall Room 218 and will be moderated by A.J. Enchill, president and executive director of the Berkshire Black Economic Council. Featured panelists include Dr. Samantha Pettey, MCLA's associate professor for history and political science, Joe Donahue, WAMC's host of The Roundtable and The Bookshow, and Dr. Mason Williams, Williams College's associate professor of political science and leadership studies. 

 

About the Panelists and Moderator 

 

A.J. Enchill, Berkshire Black Economic Council 

Born to immigrants from Ghana, A.J. Enchill is a native of Pittsfield and the eldest of four brothers. Enchill is a graduate of The Governor's Academy, where he was a dorm proctor and lacrosse captain. He went on to play varsity lacrosse at Tufts University, where he was also a BLAST scholar, a Latin Tutor, and he earned a B.A. in American Studies. Enchill is a two-time National champion and facilitated class discussion for an American Studies prerequisite course called "Race in America." 

 

From 2017 through 2022, Enchill performed constituent services and community outreach as the District Aide for State Senator Adam G. Hinds. He was formerly the board co-chair for Multicultural BRIDGE. Enchill is a past board member of Berkshire Community Action Council and Community Health Programs. He also served on the  C4 Arts Initiative. Enchill is on The Executive Committee of the Berkshire County Branch of

 

The NAACP where he serves as the Economic Development and Justice Chair. Enchill is the founder and President of the Berkshire Black Economic Council. Enchill is now participating in the

 

Boston Fed's Leaders for Equitable Local Economies where he and his brother Auric, support BIPOC businesses in The City of Pittsfield by working with city and key institutions to shift approaches to small business support and purchasing. 

 

In 2022, Enchill was awarded the  Non Sibi Sed Aliis Award by The Alumni Council of  The Governors Academy and he was named Berkshire 25 by Berkshire Magazine. The Healy-Driscoll Transition Policy Committee appointed Enchill to serve as a Co-Chair for The Jobs and Flourishing Economies Transition Committee for Governor Maura Healy's administration. Enchill has since been appointed by Governor Healy to serve on The Governor's Advisory Committee on Black Empowerment for The Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 

 

Enchill returned to his hometown to impact his community in a way that inspires young folks to return to the Berkshires to strengthen the place that raised them. 

 

Dr. Samantha Pettey, MCLA 

Originally from southeastern Massachusetts, Dr. Samantha Pettey has been interested in politics since a young age and has worked in the History and Political Science Department at MCLA since Fall 2016. Dr. Pettey teaches a range of courses on American government but is most passionate about teaching and researching Congress, state and local politics and women in politics.  

 

Dr. Pettey's current research focuses broadly on female candidates. She is particularly interested in the impact institutional features and demographic characteristics have on state-level candidate emergence and success.

 

Joe Donahue, WAMC 

For over 35 years, Joe Donahue - the award-winning host of WAMC/ Northeast Public Radio's The Roundtable - has been widely recognized for fostering insightful, thought-provoking conversation. Donahue offers his listeners some of the world's most fascinating people and subjects. He is a lifelong advocate of reading and writers and hosts the nationally syndicated, The Book Show. 

 

Donahue is the Senior Director of News and Programming for WAMC and has been with the station since 1994. He is best known for his continuing work as a talk show host and interviewer on the daily talk program, The Roundtable. Mix a roster of guests and intelligent questions and you get interviews Metroland described as "in a category by themselves" and "distinguished by a blend of warmth and empathy, genuine curiosity, and sharp intelligence."

 

The Roundtable's hallmark is interviews by host and executive producer Donahue and his unique approach. The daily award-winning Roundtable program airs daily from 9-12 AM on the WAMC/Northeast Public Radio network, where Donahue has dedicated his career to the excellence of radio broadcasting. He also hosts the nationally syndicated half hour chat with renowned authors,

The Book Show. 

 

Donahue has been honored with over 50 national and local awards for his interviewing achievements, including the prestigious Scripps-Howard Excellence in Electronic Journalism Award and several Edward R. Murrow awards. He is also an adjunct professor at his

alma mater, The College of St. Rose, teaching interviewing and radio production. His voice has been used for major exhibits at museums, including at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum and in the award-winning documentary, Indian Point. Donahue was a visiting faculty member at Bennington from Fall 2021 - Fall 2022, and Spring 2024. 

 

Dr. Mason B. Williams, Williams College 

Dr. Mason B. Williams is the chair of leadership studies and an associate professor of leadership studies and political science at Williams College. He has been with Williams College since 2014. Dr. Williams holds a B.A. in History from Princeton University (2006), and an M.A. in History from Columbia University (2009), where he later received his doctorate in 2012.  

 

His areas of expertise include U.S. political history, 20th-century U.S. history, American political development, the politics of historical memory, and the history of New York. Dr. Williams has authored several books, including "City of Ambition: FDR, La Guardia, and the Making of Modern New York" and co-edited works such as "Shaped by the State: Toward a New Political History of the Twentieth Century." 

 

He teaches various courses at Williams College, such as "Visionaries, Pragmatists, and Demagogues: An Introduction to Leadership Studies" and "Race and Inequality in the American City."