Making class optional on Election Day would make it easier for students to take the time out of their day to travel to their voting locations and not have to worry about missing class. If attendance isn’t optional on Election Day, hundreds of young people at our university will not be able to participate in an election that will greatly affect the future.
As a bipartisan coalition of six civic engagement student organizations, we strongly agree with the above argument provided by UF student Aggie Argeros. Only 24.1 percent of eligible students at UF voted in the 2014 midterm elections. UF students face many structural and personal roadblocks to voting.
“I would be able to dismiss any anxieties about missing an attendance grade,” Isabella Trejo said. “(I) am looking forward to voting, but with mandatory attendance grades, I very well may not be able to.”
Students have expressed that they have classes all day and work at night. One said he or she plans to travel back home to Pinellas County to vote. Several students said they fear their grades will suffer in classes with mandatory attendance requirements.
The current UF President’s report on strategic planning aspires to provide “an outstanding and accessible education that prepares students for work, citizenship and life.” Further, UF’s Strategic Plan for 2015-2020 states that the “University of Florida’s Division of Student Affairs is committed to instilling civic values and a pride in civic engagement in our student body.” Our coalition hopes to guide UF to accomplish its plan in part by pursuing legislation in Student Government this week calling for UF instructors to make class attendance optional on Election Day. We hope that instructors will listen.
Signed,
Democracy Matters,
Young Americans for Freedom,
UF College Democrats,
Gators for Underrepresented Voters,
Gators Vote Everywhere,
Gators for No Labels
