Youth Outreach: Voter Registry & Civics
The LWV of Alameda views our youth as critical to the future health of our democracy. With this in mind, we are exploring a number of ways to increase youth awareness of issues affecting their lives. On a practical level, we encourage and assist voting-age youth to exercise the right to vote. Youth outreach is perhaps our most important mission.
Youth Voter
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The League of Women Voters of Alameda, with the assistance of the Registrar of Voters (ROV) visit civic classes in participating Alameda high schools once a year to demonstrate online voter registration through the California Secretary of State website.
The ROV helps students understand the responsibilities of keeping one's registration current. The LWV of Alameda demonstrates the use of the State website; and we show them how the Voter's Edge website provides unbiased, in-depth voting information on candidates and ballot measures. |
Youth Civics Program
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In partnership with the College of Alameda (CoA), the League of Women Voters of Alameda has created the Democracy Matters: High School Civics Scholarship Program to help students become informed, critical thinkers and participants in Making Democracy Work.
This lively educational program, begun in 2015, encourages students to develop their communication skills in competition with their peers by analyzing and taking positions on key public policy issues. This program was begun to increase youth engagement in the League, expose teens to our education and advocacy missions, and enrich local schools' civics education. Debate topics are selected from positions taken by the League of Women Voters. The winner receives a $1,000 scholarship, and the runner up a $500 scholarship. All participants earn League recognition and a credit in Communications from the CoA. This year's event details are below. |
Speech
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The League of Women Voters of Alameda and College of Alameda (CoA) will hold their 5th annual Democracy Matters High School Civics Scholarship Speech Tournament, on Friday, 24 April 2020 at CoA. Click on the image of students in a classroom to play the two-minute video about the event. It describes the challenge to high school students in Alameda to create a persuasive speech on "Fighting Fake News: How Can We Promote News Literacy and Create More Informed Communities?"
We are looking to accept approximately five students to participate and compete in the persuasive speech tournament on Friday April 24, 2020 from 5-7pm in the F-Building Pit at COA. The winner will receive a $1,000 scholarship and the runner up will get $500. All students will receive college credit from the Communication Department at COA for their participation. Students can submit their Democracy Matters Speech Tournament application here. |
