Student Voter Initiative Achieves Great Successes

During the very first days of the fall semester, a student-organized Rock the Vote initiative sprang to life, with volunteers canvassing residence halls, encouraging students and their families to register to vote and providing them with the materials to do so. First-year students were also encouraged to register during orientation, in their First Year Experience classes and at various athletic events. The initiative also included a concert featuring the reggae band Jah Works on the academic Quad in September.

The group organized registration opportunities and absentee ballot requests on several occasions leading up to the election, and eventually encouraged nearly 1,300 students to participate in this year’s election.

"I am beyond thrilled with the outcome of this initiative because it is a perfect example of what my generation has the power to do if we really apply ourselves,” says Kat Kienle, ’09, one of the initiative’s organizers. “The youth turnout in this historic election was like none other and I am empowered that we, here at Loyola, were a part of that. We are making people listen and realize that though we are young, we are hardly apathetic, but rather active and ready to take on great challenges."

After the registration drive ended in mid-October, program coordinators continued their voter awareness efforts, distributing handouts providing an overview of candidates’ stances on important issues and scheduling a student debate. The student initiative wrapped up on election night with a McGuire Hall election watch party that attracted several hundred attendees.

The student initiative was complemented by one organized by the Center for Community Service and Justice that emphasized “voting for the common good,” an approach to voter awareness that focuses on considering social justice issues in one’s voting process. Throughout the fall, CCSJ provided non-partisan literature designed to help members of the campus community approach this year’s election from a social justice perspective.