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Civic education recently took on real meaning for seniors at Mamaroneck High School, when students from Joe Liberti’s Original Civic Research and Action class used National Voter Registration Day, which falls on September 17, as an opportunity to register to vote.
New York state law allows citizens 16 and older to pre-register, which automatically registers them to vote when they turn 18 and are legally eligible to vote.
Starting the previous day, social studies students had the opportunity to fill out voter registration forms, which were sent to the Westchester County Board of Elections with the help of the League of Women’s Voters.
Sitting in a classroom decorated with reminders of the importance of community involvement, senior Max Szuchman filled out his registration form and said, “I think registering to vote is important because it is a way to use your voice to create positive change . Voting is super important and can really make a huge difference in the country.”
Both Szuchman and his classmate Emma Post were among those in Liberti’s class who actively encouraged their fellow seniors to register. “Research has shown that if you become involved in the election process earlier, you will continue with it for the rest of your life,” Post said.
Liberti, who teaches the four-year social studies program, which starts students in ninth grade and continues into their senior year, expects up to 300 students to fill out registration forms.
He said the course not only gives students the opportunity to learn about the roles and responsibilities of citizenship, but also to go deeper than that. “As they register to vote today, which is an important part of being an active citizen, here we see the first step toward long-term engagement, giving students the opportunity to explore issues that matter to them are . It really is an opportunity to provide in-depth, authentic civic education.”
This article originally appeared in Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Voter pre-registration is available for eligible high school students in New York
