PSU graduates make career of supporting marijuana use

By CHERYL FRANKENFIELD
Collegian Staff Writer

Lobbying for people's rights, two Penn State graduates have expanded their work at college into fulltime careers.

Robert Kampia, director of government relations for the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), and Chuck Thomas, director of communications for MPP, were Penn State students when they met at a campus discussion on drug policy. During Fall Semester 1990, the two founded the Penn State National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).

The pair works for MPP, a group based in Washington, D.C.

MPP works with federal and state legislators and generates media coverage for users of medicinal marijuana, Kampia said.

At Penn State, Thomas, who majored in psychology, learned about reforming policies through courses in criminology.

"(It's) never too early to start lobbying," Thomas said about student groups.

Kampia was arrested at Penn State for growing marijuana plants. He spent three months in Centre County Prison and was kicked out of school for more than a year, which delayed his graduation with an engineering science degree.

Kampia said while in prison, it was hard to concentrate on the best bridge or road to build as a future engineer while people were sitting in a jail cell for growing vegetables.

Thomas then graduated, but Kampia remained at Penn State after being released from prison and being elected president of the Undergraduate Student Government. Kampia hired Thomas to work in the USG office during his term.

"(We) focused political energy on changing (the) university's disciplinary policies," Kampia said about drug violations.

Some other issues he tried to address were publicizing the university budget and re-instituting a recycling program on campus.

After Kampia graduated, he and Thomas went to work for NORML's office in Washington, D.C., but decided in 1995 to form their own group -- Marijuana Policy Project.

"We had a vision on how to do things better," Kampia said.

Marijuana Policy Project is a newer marijuana advocacy group that lobbies for medicinal marijuana, an issue that has heated up recently, said Paul Armentano, national publications director for NORML. Occasionally the two groups work together because they have similar goals.

"Even if you pick an ultra-unpopular (issue), pursue it like a zealot. You're going to make progress on (the) issue both at Penn State and after," Kampia said.

Thomas Borkovec, professor of psychology and one of Thomas' professors, said in this student's case, a passion became a full-time job.

"He was very insightful and very mature in perceptions about life and other people," Borkovec said. "It's very important for people to follow their passions and dreams."

Activism is an underrepresented career, Thomas said. Not everyone needs to be an activist, but every career has the opportunity for helping people.