December 11, 2025
Paige Haehlke
Eileen Newcomer ’13 expands voter access through League of Women Voters of Wisconsin
Eileen Newcomer ’13’s journey from a prospective Lake Forest College student to Deputy Director of the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin illustrates how a supportive, enriching Forester education can lead to personal growth and an impactful career.
Newcomer has long been passionate about making positive change in the world. From interning at the Environmental Defense Fund to helping lead a grassroots organization that encourages active and informed participation in democracy, her career has consistently centered on creating meaningful community impact.
At Lake Forest, Newcomer found the intellectual foundations that would later guide her professional mission. As a double-major in history and environmental studies, Newcomer explored both how society came to be the way it is today and how climate change has developed over time.
In addition to academics, Newcomer studied abroad in Greece and was heavily involved in student organizations like Art Club and the sorority Kappa Alpha Theta. Taking on leadership roles in her sorority—an organization meant to empower women academically, personally, and professionally—helped Newcomer find her voice and sense of self-assurance.
“When I was a senior, I found out that my boyfriend's family thought that women shouldn't have leadership positions,” Newcomer said. “I was like, ‘What? I’m in leadership positions—they think that about me?’ When you're getting mixed messages from the outside world, it is really nice to be part of a community that's saying, ‘No, they're wrong, and you’re capable of doing things.’”
Before Newcomer attended Lake Forest College, she didn't think graduate school could be an option for her, but professors encouraged her to consider applying. Taking their advice, she went on to pursue a master of science degree in sociomedical sciences from Columbia University, concentrating on the history and ethics of public health.
"At Lake Forest, I built confidence in myself, and the College expanded the possibilities of what my life could be,” Newcomer explained.
“At Lake Forest, I built confidence in myself, and the College expanded the possibilities of what my life could be.”
Newcomer can draw a line connecting her experiences at Lake Forest College to her opportunities in graduate school, all the way through to the work she does now as the Deputy Director of the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin.
“During undergrad, I wrote my thesis on the public perception of the pesticide DDT between when it was introduced and when it was banned,” Newcomer said. “One of the organizations I researched was the Environmental Defense Fund, and I was able to intern with them during grad school in New York. Now at the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, we’re advocating for the elimination of PFAS, or forever chemicals.”
Newcomer came to her role at the League after working for the Wisconsin Veterans Museum Foundation for several years. Wanting to be more involved in politics, she applied to the organization and worked her way up from Voter Education Coordinator to Deputy Director. Her work focuses on voter access, voter education, and voting rights—she aims to remove voting barriers in order to strengthen participation in democracy.
One of the League’s current major projects surrounds language access and Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act, which states that if more than five percent of a community’s population are members of a single language minority group, its election information needs to be available in that language.
“Right now, we’re focused on six communities that are required to provide bilingual information in English and Spanish and helping them obtain the resources and technology to be able to do so,” Newcomer explained.
For Newcomer, work is personal. She and people she cares about have been directly affected by politics, and her work serves to give people a voice in their communities.
“I think every person deserves to live with dignity and respect and live happy and healthy lives,” Newcomer said. “Our government is a social contract with each other for how we distribute resources, and everyone should be at the table for that conversation. We make that happen by expanding voter access.”