The following is an excerpt of a State Journal-Register column written by Jill Hawkins, program director for the UIS Volunteer and Civic Engagement Center, that was published on Nov. 6, 2022.
The November general election is only two days away, and at the University of Illinois Springfield, we’re preparing to make sure every student has the ability to vote. From the day they arrive on campus, UIS students are taught the importance of civic engagement and how to register to vote.
At UIS, we center our efforts on providing opportunities for students to understand the importance of the potential they have to be agents of positive change. We empower students to act in ways that solve important social issues — both political and non-political.
We are proud to be designated a “Voter Friendly Campus,” which recognizes the various strategies we enact to build a culture of democratically educated and engaged students. Likewise, we are proud of UIS students who voted at a rate of 67.5% in the 2020 election. This rate exceeded the national average for collegiate voting as outlined in the National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement.