Investing in the next generation

Many schools offer rewarding civics classes to young people, but sadly, as education budgets are being cut by the states during these difficult economic times, this important subject is being scaled back.

At Rock the Vote, we wanted to find a way to help young people celebrate their right to vote and encourage them to make a commitment to participate in every election as adults. So we created a program called Democracy Class, a one-class period lesson that uses pop culture, video, a classroom discussion, and a mock election to teach students about the history of voting and how to get registered.

Last Wednesday, to celebrate the anniversary of 18-year-olds winning the right to vote, we launched the first-annual Democracy Day in classrooms around the country. In more than 1,000 schools and counting in all 50 states, educators committed to teaching Democracy Class to their students this spring.

We got a little help from some entertainers and elected officials who agreed with us that turning 18 and getting the right to vote is, as Joe Biden would say, a BFD.

Darren Criss, star of Fox’s Emmy award-winning mega-series Glee, kicked off the national celebration by teaching Democracy Class at Alexander Hamilton High School in Los Angeles. He also got young people around the country fired up by appearing on MTV and CBS national radio to encourage his peers to get registered.

Democracy Day events were celebrated from coast to coast, in places like Seattle, Wash, Cleveland, Ohio, Charlotte, Mich., Columbia, S.C., and Miami, Fla.

As word spreads of the program, Democracy Class will continue to gain momentum across the country in the coming weeks and months. In Pennsylvania, the School District of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Youth Commission have partnered to host a week-long Voter Registration Drive from April 11- 15th asking every high school in Philadelphia to bring Democracy Class to their students. While in California, the Youth Policy Institute (YPI), the largest after-school provider for high schools in California, will roll out Democracy Class at more than 40 high schools in Los Angeles. The Chicago city school district will also take part in Democracy Class presentations, as will classrooms in Atlanta and New York City.

Young people tell us they are excited to have the chance to celebrate their rights, and they encourage their representatives in Congress to invest in them.

As Ashley Garcia, a senior at F.W. Springstead High School in Spring Hill, FL, wrote in a blog about the need for civics education on The Huffington Post:

“The right to vote is arguably the most important right given to the people in this country because it empowers and inspires its citizens to have the liberty to choose their leaders,” she said.

“When motivating our student population, I believe it is important to allow them to first see how important they are to society and to the political system by explaining how voting affects them and how important their votes really are. By engaging them in their civic duty to their communities and country, we will create a better environment where students know that their voices and votes really matter.”

Heather Smith is the president of Rock the Vote.