CAMPUSES ACROSS NC COMPETE IN CIVIC ENGAGEMENT FOR UPCOMING ELECTION

You Can Vote and North Carolina Campus Engagement in collaboration with the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge (ALL IN), a national, nonprofit, nonpartisan initiative of Civic Nation, have partnered with 31 campuses including Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), technical and community colleges, and public and private universities to foster friendly competition and increase student voter participation through the North Carolina Campus Challenge. 

The NC Campus Voting Challenge is a nonpartisan recognition program for higher education institutions in North Carolina with a commitment to increasing student voter participation and engagement on campuses across the state. Youth voter turnout in 2020 increased 10% from the 2016 Election. Average turnout across Challenge participating campuses was 17.6%. North Carolina is on its way to record-breaking turnout in the 2022 Midterm elections and this challenge is an important opportunity to support and reward these efforts.

Awards will be based on campuses’ National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE) reports generated by the Institute for Democracy & Higher Education at Tufts University in Mass. Participation in the North Carolina Challenge will automatically include participation in the national ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. 

North Carolina Campus Engagement and You Can Vote will announce awards for highest campus voter turnout, most improved campus voter turnout, and highest student voter registration rate for both 4-year institutions and 2-year institutions using data from NSLVE in the November 2022 election. The results will be released in September 2023. 

Kate Fellman, executive director and founder of You Can Vote and Leslie Garvin, executive director of North Carolina Campus Engagement will be available for questions at 12 PM at the NC College Voter Summit Friday, September 9th, 2022, at Elon University in Ward Octagon - Moseley Center 105 A.  The media engagement can be viewed virtually on Zoom.

“You Can Vote’s goal is to help young people in NC to cast their first four ballots by the age of 24, #Vote4x24, to initiate a practice of voting that will last a lifetime,” said Fellman. “Through the NC Campus Challenge, we reach students on campuses across the state through partnerships with campus administration, faculty, and student groups. You Can Vote provides evidenced-based training, tools, and hands-on support for this competition and we’re excited to achieve record student turnout across NC in 2022!”

“Voting is a key component of NC Campus Engagement’s mission to prepare students for civic and social responsibility,” said Garvin. “By participating in the NC Campus Challenge, we are able to provide funding and resources to help campuses deepen and expand student voter engagement. The challenge compliments and elevates the work of individual NC campuses, the partner orgs in the NC Campus Voting Coalition, and the statewide NC College Voter Summit.”  

About You Can Vote

You Can Vote is a nonpartisan nonprofit that trains and mobilizes volunteers to educate, register, and empower all North Carolina citizens to successfully cast their ballot. 

About North Carolina Campus Engagement 

NC Campus Engagement is a network of colleges and universities committed to preparing students for civic and social responsibility, to partnering with communities for positive change, and to strengthening democracy. 

For more information, please visit: www.nccampuschallenge.org.