The Politics of University Student Voting

The 2020 election saw record-breaking turnout, and college and university students were no exception. In this session, Nancy Thomas, director of Tufts University’s Institute for Democracy & Higher Education, will discuss findings from the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE), as well as the conflicting forces at play in 2020—pandemic-driven social distancing, a backlash against President Trump, a national reckoning over racial injustice, defiance around voter access, new efforts by institutional leaders and faculty, and effective student organizing—and what it all means for democratic learning across disciplines, healthy political campus climates, and planning for the 2022 election and beyond.

Zoom – Registration Required:
https://umich.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_f5XhPfX4RdOCsvvEUD3MBw

Opening Event Speakers:

Nancy Thomas, Director, Institute for Democracy & Higher Education, Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life, Tufts University

Vincent Hutchings (discussant), Diversity and Social Transformation Professor; Hanes Walton, Jr. Collegiate Professor of Political Science and Afroamerican and African Studies, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts; Research Professor, Institute for Social Research; University of Michigan

Dave Waterhouse (discussant), Interim Co-Director, The Edward Ginsberg Center, University of Michigan

Susan Jekielek (moderator), Associate Research Scientist, Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research, University of Michigan

In 2021-22 the College and Beyond II Public Colloquium Series will explore the links between liberal education and its outcomes, with a particular focus on democratic engagement. This fall, researchers and leaders of projects focused on better understanding and increasing civic and political engagement will discuss ongoing efforts and new initiatives. In winter 2022, seminars will feature research on the enduring impact of liberal education conducted with the College and Beyond II dataset, which contains rich data about students’ experiences in and beyond college and will open to researchers in June 2022.

Visit the College and Beyond II: Outcomes of a Liberal Arts Education Colloquium Series website for more information on this and all upcoming events: https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/liberalarts