Efforts include sharing election resources for students to understand how to register in Massachusetts, if they choose to vote locally; sending reminders about deadlines for absentee voting by state, if they choose to vote in their home state; and hosting events with guest speakers from across the political spectrum, to get students engaged and encourage conversations. There has also been an emphasis on prioritizing election mail: Mail Services is tracking ballots that come in and how many are picked up; when students pick up their ballot, they’re informed about the submission deadline and if there is a notary requirement; and every e-mail alert from the mail room includes a reminder about the upcoming election.
“This is a non-partisan effort to support participation and discussions across the Tufts community. It’s about lowering the barriers and increasing enthusiasm on our campuses,” said McAndrew. She highlights that much of the voting outreach has been led by students with support from staff and faculty, emphasizing “huge turnout for debate watch parties; weekly office hours held by non-partisan organization Jumbo Vote to answer questions about deadlines and state-level requirements; and notary hours for the states that require it.”
McAndrew is confident that Tufts’ civically minded student body will participate in this year’s election, as they have in past cycles. “Civic engagement has long been at the core of Tufts’ mission and Tisch College helps to operationalize that commitment and promise. We want all students to have their own civic pathway that is integrated into their academic experiences and student life on their campus,” she said.
Notably, Tisch College offers the first of its kind Civic Studies major. There are varying levels of engagement available to all students—some may attend Tisch College’s well-known Solomont Speaker Series events while others may take courses or participate in a Tisch’s Summer Fellowship, a 10-week paid opportunity with a community or government organization; the Tisch Scholarship Program, working with a local non-profit; the Initiative for Global Leadership (IGL) programming, clubs, and research trips; or Tufts Civic Semester, for incoming first-year students.
McAndrew also references Tisch College’s national election research that indicates high interest in this election among young voters, “Our research shows young people are very engaged in, and driven by, the issues.” In a recent interview with The Hechinger Report about the rise in young voter participation, she also cites the importance of peer-to-peer engagement in voter turnout.
This year, for the first time, there will be no classes for Tufts AS&E students on election day—a decision McAndrew says was voted on by AS&E faculty. Additionally, shuttles will be available from the Mayer Campus Center to take students to their polling location, and student greeters will be on hand to answer questions and make sure their fellow Jumbos get to the right place to vote. With resources and support like this—let’s go Jumbos … “Vote!”
If your student lives on the Medford-Somerville or Fenway campus, ask them if they have picked up their absentee ballot at their Mail Room! And for more information about how you and your Jumbo can vote, read Tufts Now.
