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Election 2024, Local News

JMU ‘ALL IN’ on efforts to increase turnout in 2024 election cycle

Crystal Graham
college voter registration drive
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James Madison University was one of five public four-year universities to receive recognition from the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge.

JMU earned the Highly Established Action Plan seal for the 2024 election cycle.

The organization recognizes higher education institutions that have developed strong action plans to increase nonpartisan democratic engagement by promoting civic learning, political engagement and college student voter participation.

“Campuses have to meet a high threshold for this honor: making a sustained, year-round commitment to civic engagement; embedding engagement in curriculum; ensuring that every student is asked to register and prepared to vote; and that the institution and its leadership is committed to a culture of student voting and civic engagement,” said Dr. Kara Dillard, interim executive director for JMU’s Madison Center for Civic Engagement.

JMU’s 2024 action plan goals include increasing voter registration and election turnout, engaging off-campus students, improving the quality of voter education and building faculty relationships.

“This recognition represents a campus-wide approach that works with student leaders, instructional faculty, student affairs and administration to create a campus culture where students are informed in conversations about important elections and societal issues,” said Dillard.

JMU also received the seal in 2022.

The 2024 seal was also awarded to Old Dominion University, Shenandoah University, Radford University and William & Mary.

Crystal Graham

Crystal Graham

Crystal Abbe Graham is the regional editor of Augusta Free Press. A 1999 graduate of Virginia Tech, she has worked for 25 years as a reporter and editor for several Virginia publications, written a book, and garnered more than a dozen Virginia Press Association awards for writing and graphic design. She was the co-host of "Viewpoints," a weekly TV news show, and co-host of Virginia Tonight, a nightly TV news show on PBS. Her work on "Virginia Tonight" earned her a national Telly award for excellence in television.