"In eighth grade I had Mr. (Pat) O'Hara for American government class, and he was kind of conservative in his politics," she said. "I was kind of the opposite, and we used to get into these really interesting friendly arguments about different issues.

"He'd say something in class, and I'd think to myself that I could refute that," Schopis said. "It got to the point to where when I raised my hand, the other students would put down their pencils and sit back to listen to us debate each other."

That interest in politics has blossomed.

Schopis is working this year as a field organizer in Madison and Union counties for the Barak Obama campaign.

As a field organizer, Schopis is responsible for recruiting, training and mobilizing Obama supporters in Madison and Union counties.

"It's a lot of fun, but it's a lot of hard work and long hours," she said. "I'm working 80-hour weeks right now, and it will probably be 100 hours in the fall. But I'm loving it."

A member of the GHHS class of 2003, Schopis graduated in 2007 from Ohio Wesleyan with degrees in history and politics and government.

A supporter of Hillary Clinton, Schopis began working as a field organizer for the Clinton campaign in the fall of 2007.

"I moved to Iowa and hit the ground running," she said. "It was a little overwhelming at first. Iowa was a new place, but I really enjoyed the work."

A field organizer spends most of her time building relationships with people in their community, whether it's by phone banks, canvassing or at campaign events, Schopis said.

"I really like people and talking to them getting to know them," she said. "So this is a job that's a good fit for me."

After the Iowa caucuses, Schopis worked in Indiana and Virginia for the Clinton campaign.

When the former First Lady's run for the presidency ended, Schopis at first thought she would proceed with plans to attend law school.

But as a new supporter of presumptive Democratic nominee Obama, Schopis said, she decided she needed to work for his election.

"I just don't think we can afford another four years of George Bush, which we'd get with John McCain," she said.

When she contacted the Obama campaign, "they asked me if I wanted to move to West Jefferson, so here I am," Schopis said. "I'm kind of flying by the seat of my pants, but it's exciting."

In eighth grade, she played football and West Jefferson was one of Grandview's biggest rivals at the time, Schopis said.

"I try not to mention Grandview too often," she said, laughing.

Schopis said she was fortunate to have teachers like O'Hara and, at the high school, Steve Hall and Ray Corbett who encouraged her interest in politics.

"You know, in eighth grade my favorite TV show was '60 Minutes,'" she said. "The other kids weren't watching '60 Minutes.' I enjoyed getting to talk about the issues with the teachers in the classroom or in the halls

"Even if I disagreed with them, I learned a lot from debating with them," Schopis said. "And I think they might have learned something from me, too."

She said she will probably go on to law school or graduate school after the election is over.

"I'm not thinking beyond anything but the election right now," Schopis said. "My entire focus is on Nov. 4. I'll sleep on Nov. 5, then we'll go from there."

afroman@thisweeknews.com