Noah Cassil ’27, center, registers students to vote at Achieve. Lead. Vote!'s Constitution Campfire event.300+ registered so far
A dedicated group of Susquehanna University students is making a final push to register as many students as possible to vote in the weeks that remain before the 2024 election — registering more than 300 students to vote since the start of the academic year.
“Historically, student populations are underrepresented at the polls, despite them being the newest members of our democracy,” said Meryl Czeponis ’25, a triple major in political science, public policy and creative writing from Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania. “I have been floored by the number of students at Susquehanna who sought us out for information, who are excited about getting out to vote, and who are looking forward to the election.”
Czeponis is working alongside Margaret Bachman ’26, a double major in legal studies and management from Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, and volunteer Noah Cassil ’27, a double major in political science and creative writing with a minor in the Honors Program from Silver Spring, Maryland. They are part of the university’s nonpartisan Achieve. Lead. Vote! initiative, which is sponsored by Susquehanna’s David ’69 and Sharon Johnson Center for Civic Engagement.
“By supporting student participation in elections, we help cultivate a generation that values their voice and understands the importance of shaping the future of their communities through civic engagement,” said Rolfe Peterson, associate professor of political science in Susquehanna’s School for Natural and Social Sciences and faculty advisor to Achieve. Lead. Vote!
Meeting students where they are to register voters
Voter registration has happened through various events — the annual Activities Fair, visits to classrooms, club meetings, sports teams and Greek organizations, tabling events in Susquehanna’s Charles B. Degenstein Campus Center and Blough Weis Library, and a s’mores campfire to celebrate National Constitution/Voter Registration Day on Sept. 17. Events will be ongoing until the voter registration deadline on Oct. 21.
At these events, Bachman, Cassil and Czeponis and other trained nonpartisan volunteers help students register to vote and educate them on how to vote in the Nov. 5 election, whether they will vote by absentee ballot or in person, in their hometown precinct or in Snyder County.
Margaret Bachman ’26, left, answers some questions during a voter registration event.“We want to be here to support students and let them know it is a quick application to register and they will then be able to vote however they decide to cast their ballot,” Bachman said.
Susquehanna was recently recognized by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge for its nonpartisan efforts that led to high levels of student voter participation in the 2022 midterm elections. The university received the Silver Seal, highlighting its commitment to encouraging civic involvement and student voting. It was the latest in several honors the university has received in recognition of its voter registration and turnout efforts. Susquehanna has twice been named a Voter Friendly Campus by the Fair Elections Center’s Campus Vote Project and Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education, and in 2021 was awarded with the Most Improved Voter Turnout - Four-year Award as a part of ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge’s Pennsylvania Campus Voting Challenge.
“Voting is the great equalizer,” Cassil said. “Every American regardless of race, gender, ethnicity or socioeconomic status can cast one ballot. If you choose not to vote, you’re allowing someone else to have more influence on your community than you.”
For Bachman, this year’s efforts are about much more than the upcoming presidential election.
“This is about building an environment on campus that teaches students it is important to be heard, to voice your opinions and to do it in a kind and supportive way,” Bachman said. “Our team is a great group of people who I believe share these views, and I am so proud to be working with them. No one will ever agree on everything, but we can still be in this together and want what is best for our country and community here on campus.”
