Marywood Student Recognized for Voter Engagement Efforts

Recently, Marywood University and ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge announced that Marywood student Austen Miller has been recognized on the 2022 ALL IN Student Voting Honor Roll. The ALL IN Student Voting Honor Roll is a recognition program for college students at participating campuses doing outstanding work to advance nonpartisan democratic engagement. Austen joins a group of 82 college students recognized for their nonpartisan voter engagement efforts on campuses across the country in 2021.

“I am so proud of the example that Austen has set as our Student Government Association President. He is a role model for our entire campus, working in partnership with our university efforts to ensure that all students become informed, active citizens, who participate in elections at all levels each and every year,” said Sister Mary Persico, IHM, Marywood’s president, who joined more than 300 college presidents and chancellors in committing to full student voter registration and participation in all elections through the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge.

By signing the pledge, Marywood University committed to ensuring all eligible students are able to register to vote and cast informed ballots in the general elections and beyond. Further, they committed to fostering campus cultures that support nonpartisan student civic learning, political engagement and student voter participation. A full list of signatories can be found here.

“At Marywood, we are committed to working with campus stakeholders to increase electoral participation in 2022 and beyond,” stated Sister Mary, “As an institutional leader, I value providing opportunities to empower all eligible voters at Marywood to register and turnout to vote. I am proud to sign the Higher Education Presidents’ Commitment to Full Student Voter Participation.”

While college student voter participation in elections increased from the 2014 midterm election to the recent 2018 midterm election, less than half of college students made their voices heard by casting their ballots. According to the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement,voter turnout at the more than 1,000 institutions participating in the study increased by 21 points from 19% to 40%.

“Today, young people are truly seeing how the decisions their elected officials make impact their everyday lives, and in this critical time, ensuring that they are able to make their voices heard safely is critical,” said Jennifer Domagal-Goldman, Executive Director of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. “These students registered voters, served on their campus voting coalitions, spearheaded voter education efforts, advocated for campus polling locations, and organized other voter engagement efforts to ensure their peers were confident and informed voters. We are excited to see what they continue to accomplish ahead of the 2022 midterms and to partner with higher education leaders across the country to change the culture at colleges and universities around engagement in our country’s political process.”

The ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge empowers colleges and universities to achieve excellence in nonpartisan student democratic engagement. Campuses that join the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge complete a set of action items, with the support of ALL IN Challenge staff, to institutionalize nonpartisan civic learning, political engagement, and voter participation on their campus. The ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge currently engages over 9 million students from more than 870 institutions in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.