Loyola recognized for campus engagement in student voting
Loyola University Maryland has been named a 2024 ALL IN Most Engaged Campus for College Student Voting, which recognizes colleges and universities making intentional efforts to increase nonpartisan democratic engagement and college student voting.
Loyola met all of the criteria to be recognized as a Most Engaged Campus, including participation in the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge and the Higher Education Presidents’ Commitment to Full Student Voter Participation.
“The members of LoyolaVotes are honored to be recognized as part of the community of colleges and universities involved in the important work of civic engagement,” said Timothy B.P. Clark, Ph.D., assistant professor of Mathematics and Statistics and co-chair of the LoyolaVotes Task Force. “As Ignatian citizens, we are called to act in ways that help grow the ranks of active, informed voters. Through conversations with individual voters, we seek initiatives that lead to increased participation in democracy.”
As part of Loyola’s participation in the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, the University developed LoyolaVotes during the 2017-18 academic year. LoyolaVotes is a non-partisan campus task force that facilitates civic engagement among students, faculty, staff, administrators, and members of the surrounding community. The task force plans and holds events, advises the LoyolaVotes Ambassadors student organization, and uses an online platform called TurboVote to provide free resources about voter registration, absentee ballots, and election information.
"At LoyolaVotes, we help simplify the registration process and offer an open dialogue about the emotions surrounding voting,” said Laura Crowley, ’27, democracy and civic engagement coordinator for the Loyola Center for Community, Service, and Justice (CCSJ). “Being there to help students through each step of the voting process means that they have answers to their questions and experience less stress about having to vote, especially while away at school. CCSJ supports LoyolaVotes in an effort to ensure students’ voices are heard and they understand they have the power to push for change when they want to see it."
Loyola had an 80% student voting rate for the 2020 United States Presidential Election, above the 66% national average for all institutions, which earned the University the ALL IN Platinum Seal Award for Excellence in Student Voter Engagement. That year, Loyola also earned several ALL IN Maryland Campus Voting Challenge Awards, including Highest Voter Registration (88.6%), Highest Voter Turnout (80%), and Most Improved Voter Turnout from 2016 (+32.5%).
For the 2022 United States midterm elections, Loyola was named an ALL IN Most Engaged Campus and earned a Bronze Seal Award for Excellence in Student Voter Engagement.
“LoyolaVotes has had the unique opportunity to provide students with the proper resources to register to vote, make a plan to vote, and understand what is on their ballot,” said Braeden DiFranceisco, ’26, president of the American Politics Club and director of civic engagement for the Student Government Association. “We want to continue this healthy dialogue past election years and help students of all majors and backgrounds feel comfortable expressing their opinions and educating themselves on events effecting our nation.”
Learn more about some of the prestigious rankings and notable accolades that Loyola University Maryland has earned from major national, international, and regional reports, studies, and surveys.