Public Service Project posts highlight students at colleges and universities across the country within the IOP’s National Campaign for Political and Civic Engagement who are improving their communities through public service on their campuses. As there are many different ways in which one can serve the public, the IOP aims to feature a broad collection of Campaign student public service experiences to inspire all of us to make a difference every day.
Authored by National Campaign student from the University of Virginia Delia Goldin.
Scheduling, routine and habit are a college student’s best friend when finding a way to put together the hectic flurry of events and responsibilities that come and go from day to day. In order to keep track of different classes, meetings, and assignments, we create habits, forming a routine with the intent of making our lives easier and less chaotic.
So naturally, when you see a student standing in the middle of the sidewalk with a fat stack of flyers on your way to class, your guard is up. Stopping to hear what they’re promoting is out of your usual habit, and participating to whatever extent they ask you to is simply out of routine. So what do you do? For some that are more on edge with simply balancing their current priorities, you’ll do your best to avoid the disruption in your carefully crafted routine. You’ll look down at your phone, you’ll readjust how you’re holding your cup of coffee to make your hands look full, you’ll passively accept a flyer and bury it in your backpack. For other’s that are open to a little more flexibility, they may smile, accept a flyer, and take the time to consider whether or not they are willing to make a change their schedule to participate in whatever you are promoting.
This past month the UVA Center for Politics partnered with Student Council to create a Voter Registration Dorm Competition in an attempt to create an incentive and method for voter registration in a way that was as college student routine friendly as possible. With the help of Virginia 21 we were able to promote the use of TurboVote, an online system that assisted students with registration and election reminders. We structured registration as a competition to incentivize the process, promoted through email and social media, and distributed flyers on Grounds.
In terms of numbers we were able to get just over 350 first-year students to register to vote. However in terms of attitude I noticed a trend I believe to be far more significant when planning how to increase student civil participation in the future. When passing out flyers and reminding students to register, there was not a lack of interest in the election, but rather a lack of convenience. Currently, voting is not an established habit for most college students and the preparatory steps it requires are not routine. Moving forward, I think that our challenge will lie in creating a culture that sponsors civil engagement in a way that voting and the registration process can become a habit within UVA and college student routine. By appealing to the rational self-interest that shapes our current routines, our next step will be ensuring students understand how having their voices properly represented aligns with their self-interest.
Delia Goldin is a rising second year at the University of Virginia planning to major in Global Development Studies or Foreign Affairs. She is from Fairfax, Virginia and like to spend as much time as possible in nearby DC. She is also a member of Latino Student Alliance, through which she mentors elementary schoolers to help serve the growing Hispanic community of Charlottesville.
