President's Blog: From the Heart

By Eric F. Spina

Allison Saracina, a senior international studies major, has learned a powerful lesson from serving as a Dayton Civic Scholar and volunteering as a student ambassador for the nonpartisan organization Vote Everywhere.

“Democracy demands all members of society get involved, or else it’ll fail,” says the senior international studies major from Lakewood, Ohio. “There are systemic obstacles discouraging college students from being civically engaged, and student-run organizations need to take the lead in reversing this trend.”

I am heartened that Allison, fellow student ambassadors Anna Rose Redgate and Sean Newhouse, and other volunteers registered approximately 200 students to vote and sent absentee ballot reminders to more than 140 this fall. Those numbers are on top of voter-registration efforts by the College Republicans, College Democrats, and the Office of Multicultural Affairs, all working to engage students in the political process. Earlier this month, when Vote Everywhere sponsored a debate between College Democrats and College Republicans, students filled Sears Recital Hall to capacity.

This kind of civic engagement bodes well for our democracy — and our efforts as a university to ensure that every student receives an education that prepares them to make a difference in the world.

In the classroom this fall, UD’s political science professors are reiterating the importance of civic engagement and why voting matters.

From Nancy Martorano Miller: “In class we recently had the discussion of whether voting was a right, a privilege, or a responsibility. The students concluded that it is a mix of the three. When I think about the Marianist commitment to community and how much of our curriculum contains elements of having students think about their place in and contribution to their community around them, I view ‘voting as a responsibility’ as part of that. … It is important to be engaged, become informed, and cast a vote that represents your belief/desires for how the community should be governed.”

From Michelle Pautz: “So much of what the government does affects your daily life — from the safety of the food you eat, to the condition of the roads you drive on, to public safety and security, to provision of student loans — and the decisions we make in elections affect those aspects and so much more in your life.”

From Christopher Devine: I don't think most people — young or not so young — are voting because they expect to decide the election. They're voting to express their priorities and their convictions. To pass on that is to cede the floor to others to speak for you in the political arena. You should want to vote because it is an expression of your values and your investment in your community.”

Researchers at the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at Tufts University, which has studied youth civic and political behaviors for nearly two decades, are currently conducting two national surveys of more than 2,000 Americans ages 18 to 24. Preliminary data point to “a surge in political engagement, intention to vote and outreach between friends to encourage voting” — another trend that suggests today’s young people realize the importance of casting their ballots.

This is a responsibility that I take seriously, and I urge EVERYONE on our campus to take the time to explore the issues and the candidates — and vote during the 2018 midterm elections.

Allison sums it up best: “Our voices matter.”