March 15, 2021

IN THIS ISSUE

• Barry University Designated as Voter Friendly Campus, Capping Year of ‘Challenging’ Democratic Engagement
• Barry Student Leader and Faculty Members Present at National Conference
• Next Meeting of Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship Slated for April 13
• Final Forum in Academic Year’s Deliberative Dialogue Series to Focus on Climate Change

Barry University Designated As Voter Friendly Campus, Capping Year Of ‘Challenging’ Democratic Engagement

Campus Democracy Project Facilitates Successful Application

By Glenn Bowen

Barry University has been designated as a “Voter Friendly Campus,” thanks to the success of the Campus Democracy Project (CDP). Earning the designation has capped a challenging year of democratic engagement.

“Your institution is part of a select group of campuses from around the country that participated [in the Voter Friendly Campus designation process] and received the designation,” the administrators said in an email to the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) last Tuesday.

Barry is one of only 15 higher education institutions in Florida that have received the designation.

The Voter Friendly Campus administrators added: “Your institution’s efforts, despite great challenges presented by Covid-19, to break down barriers and empower students with the information and tools they need to participate in the political process [led] to [a] historic youth voter turnout and opened the door to lifelong civic engagement for your students.”

In 2019, the university developed a major plan to increase civic learning, political engagement, and voting rates among students. And last May, the CDP Committee submitted Barry’s Democratic Engagement Action Plan to the administrators of the Voter Friendly Campus designation: Fair Elections Center’s Campus Vote Project and NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education. The administrators evaluated the plan as “established,” which means it was placed in the top category of such plans.

Implementation of the Democratic Engagement Action Plan, which had got underway at the start of the 2019–2020 academic year, intensified in the run-up to the 2020 elections.

As the university worked toward the Voter Friendly Campus designation for 2021–2022, the CDP promoted participation in the democratic process through voter registration, education, and mobilization, which involved the creative use of online platforms and social media.

Some 20 students at Barry were registered as first-time voters in 2020.

A National Voter Registration Day event in September, Barry’s Florida 2020 Ballot Forum in October, political debate watch discussions, and a “vote” art contest were among a slew of focused activities that engaged Barry’s campuses and produced outcomes that demonstrated significant success in voter education and engagement. A walk to the polls—billed “Exercise Your Right … Exercise Yourself”—rounded out a challenging year in civic learning and democratic engagement. 

Throughout calendar year 2020, students were offered nonpartisan educational resources covering such topics as voting rights, ballot issues, voting methods, candidates, voter registration, and polling place information. “Know Before You Go” tips were posted on social media for students’ benefit.

A notable achievement was the broadening and strengthening of the CDP coalition for year-round work.

The CCSI established Barry’s Campus Democracy Project in 2012 to encourage voting among students and to foster interest in political issues at the local, state, and national levels.

In 2020, CDP Committee membership increased to 20 with the addition of representatives of Intercollegiate Athletics, the School of Law, the School of Podiatric Medicine, the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, and the Division of Business and Finance. They joined representatives of Campus Ministry, the CCSI, the College Democrats, the College Republicans, the Department of History and Political Science, the Department of Housing and Residence Life, the Office of Mission Engagement, the Office of Student Life, the School of Business, the School of Education, the School of Social Work, and the Student Government Association.

The CCSI, in association with the CDP Committee, submitted Barry’s Campus Report to Campus Vote Project and NASPA on January 31. 

In all, 231 colleges and universities in 37 states and the District of Columbia have been designated as Voter Friendly Campuses in 2021—the third year of the designation initiative.

The list of colleges and universities selected for the Voter Friendly Campus designation was published on March 9, and the designation will be valid until December 2022.

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Barry Student Leader And Faculty Members Present At National Conference

A student leader and a two-person faculty team from Barry were among the presenters at a national conference earlier this month. 

Joseph Minani made a one-hour workshop presentation titled “Storytelling for Social Change,” at the IMPACT Conference on March 6. The Barry Service Corps Fellow encouraged workshop participants to tell stories that would evoke empathy and create impact. 

In the days leading up to the event, Minani posted on Instagram to promote the three-day conference and his part in it.

Dr. Jalane Meloun, professor of administration, and Dr. Sean Foreman, professor of political science, presented together at IMPACT. In their workshop presentation, “Collaborative Creativity is the Secret Ingredient,” Meloun and Foreman described how they leveraged collaborative creativity as part of the Campus Democracy Project (CDP) to produce civic outcomes. They referred to three CDP-related events—“Exercise Your Right … Exercise Yourself” (Walk to the Polls), a “Vote” Art Contest, and a Census 2020 forum—as examples of creativity approached collaboratively at Barry. 

Meloun is a member and Foreman a co-chair of Barry’s Campus Democracy Project Committee. 

The IMPACT Conference is “historically the largest annual conference focused on the civic engagement of college students in community service, service-learning, community-based research, advocacy and other forms of social action.” This year’s conference was held virtually on March 4–6.

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Next Meeting Of Faculty Learning Community For Engaged Scholarship Slated For April 13

The Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship (FLC) will have only one meeting for the spring semester on Tuesday, April 13, from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. 

The agenda includes a journal article review, summaries of engaged scholarship projects by Service-Learning Faculty Fellows, and an FLC book project report by the co-editors.

The FLC facilitates professional development and reflective practice in community-engaged teaching, research, and service. Organized by the CCSI, the FLC is open to all faculty members.

All FLC members and prospective members are urged to attend the April 13 meeting, which will be held virtually. For additional information, contact any of the facilitators—Drs. Laura Finley, Pamela Hall, and Celeste Landeros—or the CCSI.

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Final Forum In Academic Year’s Deliberative Dialogue Series To Focus On Climate Change

The final forum in this academic year’s Deliberative Dialogue Series will focus on climate change and its effects on communities of color.

“Race Matters” is the topic of the series, and “We’re Sinking! Why Climate Change Disproportionately Affects Communities of Color” is the topic of the forum scheduled for April 15 from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m.

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