National Award Recognizes Voter Turnout

Oct 19, 2017

At the first ALL IN Challenge Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., Cal U is recognized for improving its student voter rate. The University received a Best in Class Award and Bronze Seal for having the most improved student voting rate among four-year public colleges of its size.

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At the first-ever ALL IN Challenge Awards ceremony, California University of Pennsylvania received a Best in Class Award for having the most improved student voting rate within the four-year, medium-size public institution category.

Cal U also earned a Bronze Seal for achieving a student voting rate between 50 percent and 59 percent.

The ALL IN Challenge Awards recognize colleges and universities across the country that are committed to increasing college student voting rates. More than 30 awards were announced at the event held Oct. 19 at the Knight Conference Center at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.

About the ALL IN Challenge

The All IN Campus Democracy Challenge is a national awards program. The Challenge encourages higher education institutions to help students form the habits of active and informed citizenship, and make democratic participation a core value on their campus.

By joining the Challenge, campuses commit to:

  • Convening a campus-wide committee that includes members from academic affairs, student affairs, and the student body, as well as any other relevant stakeholders.
  • Developing and implementing an action plan to improve democratic engagement.
  • Participating in the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE) in order to measure student voting rates.
  • Sharing their campus' action plan and NSLVE results in order to be eligible for a recognition seal and/or awards.

Nearly 300 campuses, enrolling more than 4 million students, have joined the Challenge since its launch in summer 2016. 

Cal U is ALL IN for voter engagement 

Student voter engagement activities organized by the American Democracy Project at Cal U included:

  • Panel presentations about campaign issues, including talks by students who attended the Democratic and Republican national conventions.
  • Participation by a student delegate in CollegeDebate16, a national, nonpartisan initiative that engaged young voters in the presidential election process.
  • CampaignWatch and ElectionWatch events on campus, with moderated discussions for students.
  • Panel presentations about election issues, including the popular Election Analysis Forum led by Jon Delano and featuring noted experts in politics and political science.
  • Voter registration information provided online and in convenient campus locations.
  • Assistance in getting students to the polls on Election Day.