Labor activist Mary Beth Maxwell, mentioned by many this week as a possible Obama Labor Secretary, is a former student activist and past staffer at the United States Student Association.

Maxwell, who is the strong favorite of DC heavyweight David Bonior, was a campus activist as an undergraduate at Marquette University, and she capped her student organizing career by serving as Field Director of USSA. From there she moved on to positions at NARAL, Jobs With Justice, and her current seat as executive director of American Rights at Work, a labor advocacy organization.