Periclean Voter Activation Modules

​The Periclean Voter Activation Modules are a set of curricular civic engagement resources for faculty, across all disciplines, who are interested in incorporating nonpartisan voter education into the curriculum. These modules were developed in collaboration with faculty members in Project Pericles Colleges and Universities and the Students Learn Students Vote (SLSV) Coalition. They represent a wide range of geographic regions and can be tailored for the fine arts, humanities, social sciences, and STEM. 

How to Vote

"Voting 101 As a Student" Slide Deck
​Teach students how to vote during class with this brief, adaptable presentation that educates students on how to:
  • Register to vote
  • Research what is on their ballot
  • Cast their vote!

Make a voting plan Assignment

​You can also include a “Make a Voting Plan” Assignment where students must submit an outline of how they would cast a vote. Social science research suggests people are more likely to vote if they make a plan. This assignment still works for students who are ineligible to vote, as it is written hypothetically.

Looking to Expand your slide deck?

​Check out these additional slides to expand the base presentation on "how to vote" depending on your audience which cover voting as it relates to: 
  • Civic Holidays
  • LGBTQ+ Students
  • International & Non-Citizen Students
  • Living On or Off Campus
  • Primaries & Caucuses
  • Poll Workers
  • Specific Information to your Campus

Voter suppression Module

This module covers the history and present state of voting rights challenges and includes opportunities to address voter suppression. Content is provided as a long-form document, customizable slide decks, and interactive activities. This was designed to be scaled and modified based on the instructor's needs. If more content is needed, each section provides sources to dive deeper into concepts. ​

​​Why Voting Matters

For faculty who want to demonstrate the importance of voting, this section offers activities that help combat student skepticism about the power of voting. This module encourages students to explore and articulate their personal connection to voting, the concept of the “whole vote,” and the role of voting in democracy.​
The activities guide includes an outline of activities (each take 10-15 minutes) that can be used independently or in conjunction with each other and existing classes. Curricular options include a reflective discussion for small groups, a game that demonstrates voting power, and a brief review of U.S. voting rights.

Evaluation

​This is a sample evaluation for faculty to use with their students to evaluate the modules.

Additional Resources

Ask Every Student Toolkit
​The Ask Every Student Toolkit provides resources for campuses to integrate meaningful, inclusive democratic engagement and voter registration into academics, student life, student leadership opportunities, and institutional partnerships. It is a comprehensive toolkit and growing resource of strategies, tools, and tactics that are designed to assist campus leaders in implementing full student voter registration strategies on their campuses. 

Resources from the Toolkit that are particularly useful for faculty include:
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  • Faculty Champions Guide: This is a toolkit for faculty to integrate democratic engagement activities into the classroom-both virtually and in-person. Ideas include:
    • Inviting a campus voting organization to give a presentation about voter registration to the class followed by Q&A breakout sessions.
    • Making weekly announcements with voter registration information and democratic engagement opportunities
  • Learning Management System Module: This is a template for faculty to create a module on their campus’ LMS (Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle, etc.)  and ensure students have access to information and support for participating in the voting and democratic engagement processes. The module template includes:
    • Engaging in Democracy 101
    • Why is democratic participation important to you?
    • Registering to Vote and Voting by Mail in [Your State], and more
  • Class Visits Resources: Learn how to effectively utilize the classroom visit strategy to educate students on civic engagement and register them to vote if eligible. These resources include:
    • Civic Engagement Packet that students can fill out
    • Pledge Cards for students to fill out to pledge to vote and make a voting plan
    • Voting as a Student 101 Presentation
Faculty Network for Student Voting Rights
Scholars Strategy Network's A Faculty Guide to Student Voting in Your Classroom provides simplified guidance from the wide-ranging student voting resources on how faculty can include voter registration, education and civic learning into the classroom and in interactions with students. 

Want to engage with other faculty members around best practices for student voting? Scholars Strategy Network now has an initiative dedicated to student voting called the Faculty Network for Student Voting Rights that is run by faculty, for faculty. If you want to get involved, join the network.
General Voter Engagement Resources
  • ALL IN to Vote: Powered by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, it is a nonpartisan, online resource that informs students about registering to vote, creating a plan to vote, learning about their ballot, and voting. Students can also pledge to vote and learn about becoming a poll worker.
  • Ballotpedia: A digital encyclopedia of American politics and elections, it provides neutral, accurate, and verifiable information about government officials and the offices they hold, political issues and public policy, elections, candidates, and the influencers of politics. It also includes a tool for looking up sample ballots.
  • BallotReady: A digital tool that aggregates information from candidates’ websites, social media, press, endorsers and board of elections data for the latest, most accurate information about the candidates and referendums on your ballot.
  • Campus Vote Project: Provides State Student Voting Guides to inform students about how to register to vote and cast a ballot in their school or home community.
  • Election Protection: Provides a year-round hotline 1-866-OUR-VOTE that voters can call if they have any questions or are experiencing any issues when voting. Questions can cover anything from registering to vote and requesting an absentee ballot to finding your early voting and Election Day polling locations.
  • League of Women Voters: Local chapters offer nonpartisan information about upcoming elections and opportunities for local and state advocacy.
  • The National Issues Forums Institute’s (NIFI) With the People initiative is designed to encourage sustained practices of public deliberation and voting on campuses and in communities across the country.
  • Power the Polls: An initiative to recruit more poll workers to ensure the safe, fair, and efficient administration of elections for all voters.
  • Pew Research Center: “Are you a Faith and Flag Conservative? Progressive Left? Or somewhere in between? The Pew Research Center provides a Political Typology Quiz that matches you to one of nine political typology groups, compared with a nationally representative survey of more than 10,000 U.S. adults.
  • Register2Vote: An easy tool to request a postage paid voter registration application.
  • Rock the Vote: Provides digital tools for checking your voter registration, registering to vote, and getting your voting questions answered. Rock the Vote also has programs and resources for incorporating civic engagement into a variety of formal and informal settings.
  • STEMocracy: Powered by The Andrew Goodman Foundation, offers research-informed strategies for transforming STEM students – who traditionally vote at lower rates – into civic leaders.
  • Students Learn Students Vote (SLSV) Coalition: A coalition made up of campus, nonprofit, community, student, and philanthropic leaders, all working together to grow the student vote. The SLSV Coalition has a Resource Library of programs, toolkits, action planning guides, and other resources submitted by coalition partners for others to use.
  • TurboVote: A digital tool that streamlines the process of registering to vote, updating your voter registration, requesting an absentee ballot, and signing up for reminders about upcoming elections including important dates and deadlines. Your campus can also partner with TurboVote to integrate voter engagement into campus life.
  • Vote.org: A digital tool that serves as your one-stop-shop for everything you need to vote.
  • Vote Riders: Provides information to ensure voters have the ID required to vote in their state. Vote Riders also offers free practical, legal, or financial assistance for voters who need it to get an ID for voting.
  • Vote411: Powered by the League of Women Voters Education Fund, it is a digital tool that aggregates locally-sourced information about candidates and referendums on the ballot, as well as comprehensive summaries of election rules and laws for every state.
Resources on Voting Statistics and Research
Voting Modules FAQ
Class time is time for teaching content. What are ways to incorporate this module with time constraints?
  • Explore activities that take 5-10 minutes. See our “Why Voting Matters” activities guide.
  • Take a few minutes to talk about voting. At the beginning or the end of the class, squeeze in one slide about how students can register/cast a vote.
  • Send a quick e-mail with resources.
  • Turn it into extra credit assignment: Have students write a one-page reflection paper exploring a civic themed topic. Ideas include a reflection on their personal reasons to vote (see prompts listed in the “Why Voting Matters” section) or connecting class specific content to electoral engagement, as discussed in the “Deliberative Dialogue Discussion” modules (example: How could big data influence gerrymandering regulation? How is redistricting determined in this state?). Be sure to offer many options that include all students regardless of their voting eligibility.

How do I facilitate a potentially controversial discussion in class?
Project Pericles offers resources on Deliberative Dialogue Discussions that you can use to facilitate discussions in every classroom including a facilitator guide, over a dozen discussion topics to choose from, sample presentations, and other resources from faculty and staff in our network.

Can these modules be incorporated as a co-curricular or extracurricular activity?
Yes! While the modules were developed for and by faculty, they can be used as workshops, student club activities, etc. facilitated by students, community members, etc.

What may entice my colleagues to incorporate the modules, or civic dialogue more generally, into their classrooms?
This is a critical time for our democracy and it is particularly vital that our students understand their role in making a difference in society, which begins with voting. In the Election Imperatives document released by the Institute for Democracy & Higher Education in 2020, three recommendations are to "carve out classroom time to teach students how to vote," "build and maintain community and social cohesion within your classroom and department," and "teach the policy questions for each field. Each discipline has public relevance." Allocating just 15 minutes to civil dialogue in class can make a huge difference.

Additionally, in August 2009, Project Pericles published a white paper addressing this topic: “Civic Engagement in the Classroom: Strategies for Incorporating Education for Civic and Social Responsibility in the Undergraduate Classroom” by Ariane Liazos and Jan R. Liss. This CEC White Paper shares the learnings from the Civic Engagement Course (CEC) program™ and serves as a guide for incorporating civic engagement into higher education curricula. It focuses on specific pedagogical strategies employed by the faculty to integrate education for civic and social responsibility into their courses, as well as the unique challenges of civic education. The White Paper includes a description of the methodology used; knowledge gained from the CEC program and guidance on transferability to other institutions and disciplines; Best practices that can be applied on a wide range of campuses; and an extensive bibliography.

add Periclean civic engagement resources to your drive.

You can also access all of Project Pericles' original civic engagement resources on Google Drive. When downloading the Google Drive folder, all files will be saved in Microsoft Office friendly formats, such as Word Documents and Powerpoint presentations. 
This project is supported by the Eugene M. Lang Foundation and the Mellon Foundation, with additional support from The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, the Teagle Foundation, the SLSV Coalition, and Up to Us/Net Impact. Special thanks to collaborators: Periclean Faculty Leaders, Project Pericles Program Directors, Faculty Fellows, and members of the SLSV Coalition.
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​​Please contact [email protected] if you have any questions or suggestions about our civic engagement resources.
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