Amy Liao (283) & Lina Lin (283)

During the senior class officer election at Central, 342 out of 562 seniors voted, representing about sixty-one percent of the two hundred and eighty-third class. Yet in Philadelphia, voter registration rates for eighteen-year-olds are fewer than twenty percent, according to The Civics Center. The lack of youth voter engagement is an issue that the Voter Registration Team at Central has been trying to change. 

“We really want to expand on education and empowerment when it comes to voting and 

civics in general. We don’t just want to register folks but have them be informed and engaged voters,” says Samantha “Sam” Sandhaus, a current senior and the President of Central’s Voter Registration Team. Sam became involved in voter engagement after completing a summer internship with PA Youth Vote, a statewide non-profit organization working to empower youth voices and teach them about exercising collective power. The experience inspired her to spread this message to the Central community with the Voter Registration Team. Sam, Vice President Angela Varughese (283), Treasurer Ryan Altschuler (284), Secretary James Garrow (283), Social Media Manager Corey Jackson (285), and the rest of the team have been working tirelessly to register eligible students at Central to vote. 

The team’s efforts came in handy for the November 7th general election in Philadelphia, where Philadelphians voted for a new Mayor, City Council, Pennsylvania Supreme Court members, and municipal judges. The outcome of the election has a tremendous impact on the city’s future and issues that affect students in the School District of Philadelphia, such as the quality of schools, gun violence, reproductive rights, and racial justice. The team emphasizes that issues like these make it important for all eligible students to vote. “I think that the youth in Philadelphia have very strong views on how they want different aspects of the city to look,” says Ryan. “Through voting, youth can create these changes they hope to see.”

Last year, the Voter Registration Team achieved a Central record of a ninety-four percent registration rate, putting them twelfth in the state and awarding numerous students with the Governor’s Civic Engagement Award. Of course, none of this would have been possible without Mr. Quinn, the sponsor of the Voter Registration Team, at the helm. Mr. Quinn is also the current Director of Education and Policy at PA Youth Vote and the founder of Philly Youth Vote. As a social studies teacher at Central, he recruits students to become poll workers as well as attend voter engagement field trips and events.  

The team has been hosting and attending these events to promote voting and 

civic engagement. Recently, many Central students attended the “Vote Early Day — Give Us a Ballot!” event, where they assembled near City Hall to march in a parade, carrying signs about voting. A “Get to Know the Ballot” workshop and phone-banking sessions were held to inform people about the candidates on the ballot, the issues at stake, and the importance of voting. The team also made art and marched for the Peoplehood Parade to express their passion for voter engagement with a myriad of social justice organizations. “We want people to know all the ways they can make their voices heard about issues they care about and encourage them to get involved in their political and social communities so they can fight for the change they want to see,” says Sam. “We want everyone to show up at events like this where people can earn service hours to learn about important movements taking place in our communities and how we can be a part of them.”

Although public schools have had a history of failing to get students involved in voting and civic engagement, Central’s Voter Engagement Team has informed countless students about the major impact they have as youth voters in elections through their efforts. As Sam said, “Once people understand the necessity of voting, especially in local elections, to make a change for themselves and their community, they will want to vote, for their loved ones to vote, and for everyone to vote.”