Students trying to navigate the challenging world of voting now have a valuable resource - Engage + Vote, a web page through Ball State, where voting information and a guide to political campus events are brought together in one central location.
Engage + Vote was updated on Friday for the final time with additional graphics to promote the upcoming Robert Gibbs and Liz Cheney debate and finalized deadlines for campus events.
Its appearance now will most likely stay the same throughout the election season.
The page, which is housed under the Current Students tab of Ball State's website, was the brainchild of Associate Director of Student Life Mitch Isaacs, who collaborated with student groups including University Democrats, College Republicans and Student Government Association to compile the information.
Isaacs said the goal of the web page is to help students get to the polls to vote in November.
"We want students to know their options," Isaacs said. "For most students, it's their first opportunity to vote in a presidential election, and obviously they can't vote if they're not registered."
The resources on the page are mainly focused around voter registration, which Isaacs said is "more complex than it looks." There is a guide to in- and out-of state voting with dates for deadlines for registration.
College Republicans president Kayleigh Mohler said this is information students should be aware of as soon as possible because it is time-sensitive.
"The election is still a month and a half away, but voter registration in Indiana is over [on Oct. 9] and other states across the country have similar deadlines," Mohler said. "This is information [students] need to look up now as opposed to a week before the election."
In addition to voter registration information, the page offers a calendar of campus events surrounding the election. Beyond the Gibbs-Cheney debate, these events include the 6th Congressional District debate and watch parties for the presidential debate and election night.
Students should be able to interact easily and often with the web page.
Isaacs said the Current Students page, where Engage + Vote is located, is one of the most often visited pages in the Ball State web infrastructure, and it is prime real estate to receive attention from students.
President of University Democrats Drew Farrington said he appreciates Ball State's effort to aid students in election season.
"[Engage + Vote] is responsible on the University's part. Your vote counts and it does matter," Farrington said. "I respect our university for also sharing that view and bringing in other organizations who are committed to helping students and making their voices heard."
SGA President Chris Wilkey also expressed appreciation for the initiative - particularly that it was a non-partisan effort with the sole intention of informing students.
"When [students] have any election question, they know they can go to the Ball State election page," Wilkey said. "They don't have to search it all themselves or maybe get a site that isn't exactly right. It's a main hub where you can check everything. I think it's fantastic the university did that."
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