COLLEGE MAY BOOST VOTER REGISTRATION.Byline: Sue Doyle Staff Writer VALENCIA - Whether it's from Bruce Springsteen rocking out at campaign rallies or from the president's twin daughters reaching out to other hipsters, the cry to get young voters involved with politics is heard far and wide. Despite all the attention, citizens ages 18 to 24 had the lowest registration rate for the 2004 presidential election - 58 percent, compared with 79 percent for those age 65 and older, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. U.S. Census Bureau Noun 1. Census Bureau - the bureau of the Commerce Department responsible for taking the census; provides demographic information and analyses about the population of the United States Bureau of the Census spokesman Mike Bergman. Now some California community colleges are stepping in by getting students to register to vote when they register for classes online. The movement has garnered about 65,000 new registered voters. Students at College of the Canyons College of the Canyons is one of the fastest-growing community colleges in the state. According to the National Junior College Research Association, College of the Canyons consistently ranks in the top 50 community colleges in the nation. want a piece of the action. ``Sometimes it disappoints me how indifferent young people are about politics,'' said Joel Rosario, executive vice president of the school's Associated Student Government. ``They don't realize the importance of politics.'' Eighteen-year-old Rosario and others in the association recently presented information to tr began three years ago as a pilot program at City College of San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden with the California Secretary of State's Office. During the project's first two weeks, 7,000 students registered to vote when they registered online for classes, said Leslie Smith Leslie Charles Smith, OBE (6 March 1918 – 26 May, 2005), was a co-founder of Lesney Products, the company famous for making Matchbox cars. Biography Smith was born in Enfield, Middlesex, left school at the age of 14, and was working as an export buyer in London when , City College of San Francisco's dean of governmental relations. Since then, about 26 community colleges have jumped on board. Through its computer system, the California Secretary of State's Office collects names and addresses of students who clicked yes for voter registration Voter registration is the requirement in some democracies for citizens to check in with some central registry before being allowed to vote in elections. An effort to get people to register is known as a voter registration drive. Centralized/compulsory vs. at their schools and then mails them cards for signature. ``This is a way to reach a population that votes in disproportionately dis·pro·por·tion·ate adj. Out of proportion, as in size, shape, or amount. dis  pro·por low numbers,'' Smith said. ``It's a population that's very hard to reach, and one way to reach them is this, because every semester se·mes·ter n. One of two divisions of 15 to 18 weeks each of an academic year. [German, from Latin (cursus) s they register for classes.'' Smith said the process overcomes barriers that prevented students from registering in the past, such as remembering to do it when they turn 18 or each time they move. The jury is still out on whether the program will come to College of the Canyons. It would require some changes to online registration and to some computer applications involved with the process, said Michael Wilding Michael Wilding could refer to one of three well-known people:
In addition, Trustee Joan MacGregor said officials want to see how well the project is working at other schools. The idea for online registration came from Tom Killikelly, a political-science teacher at City College of San Francisco, who hoped to get students more involved in the political process, said Phil Day, chancellor. Day said the project needs little funding or overhead. ``We believe very strongly that students ought to be voting and engaged in the political process,'' Day said. ``Why take political-science courses and government courses if you can't connect the dots with your own political engagement?'' Sue Doyle, (6610257-5254 sue.doyle(at)dailynews.com |
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