Taken from the News10Now Website: www.news10Now.com

CENTRAL NEW YORK -- Have you ever been interested in launching your own political campaign? Want to learn more about the political process?  Interested in volunteering on a political campaign?  Well, now there is a course for politically minded citizens.

The Central New York Political Leadership Institute is offering a seven week course to help people jump start a campaign for local races. Sessions include everything from fundraising to creating campaign signs and web sites.

The group held an informational meeting about the course Thursday in East Syracuse. The idea is to give those interested the tools they need to get started.

"Fourty-nine percent of the races in Onondaga County in 2009 went unopposed. So this effort is to try to see if we can generate interest in people who want to run for office, whether it's school board, town council, city council, county legislature and really on up from there," said Michael Meath, CNY Political Leadership Institute Advisory Committee.

The course starts in early March.