(Hollywood, FL) “18 in ‘18” debuted today, Election Day 2017, when Teach Florida, NCSY and Katz Yeshiva High School and held a voter registration drive for its students.
Florida law allows teens to pre-register to vote at 16 years old, meaning seniors, juniors, and many sophomore are eligible to register.
Five student leaders helped spearhead the effort by being the first to register and bringing their friends to the table. The next couple hours were filled with nonstop excitement, questions, and even lollipops as student after student filled out his or her voter registration.
KYHS’ History department backed up Teach Florida’s voter registration with classes on government, voting and civic responsibility prior to today’s activities.
“We are proud to announce that future elections in Florida will now have 78 new and excited voters,” said Mimi Jankovits, Executive Director of Teach Florida, a project of the Orthodox Union. “They are part of our community coming together to show support for government school programs, including scholarships and security funding.”
“Voting is a privilege many of us take for granted in our democratic country,” said Shira Englander, Director of Student Activities at KYHS. “Taking time out of regularly scheduled classes to emphasize the importance of being an active citizen is an important step in ensuring students value their right to vote.”
“This program allows us to educate teenagers about the policies that have a direct effect on their schools,” said Daniel Geller, Leadership and Programming Specialist at NCSY. “It attracts a diverse student body and excites them about the prospect of getting involved in the political process.”
“Engaging our community to vote in local and state elections will help our voice be heard locally and statewide,” said Daniel Aqua, Field Director of Teach Florida.
Teach Florida is bringing Jewish schools, families and community together for safer, stronger, and more affordable Jewish schools.
“18 in ‘18” will be holding voter registration drives in Jewish schools around South Florida as one of several voter registration campaigns. For more information or to run a voter registration drive at your school, please contact Daniel Aqua at teachflorida@ou.org.