Jason Kelce on schools and youth voting initiatives in Philly and Atlanta

Hey, Philly! It'south no secret that professional athletes are oftentimes put on a pedestal and given a platform to try to influence the public. But I've been thinking: At that place's 1 identify where your vocalisation matters as much as everyone else's, no matter how much more than fame, money, or touchdowns they may have on y'all—the voting berth.

Prefer the audio version of this story? Listen to this article in CitizenCast beneath:

Teaching students to speak their minds by voting is one of the greatest gifts a teacher tin can give a kid. Downwardly in Atlanta, where we'll exist facing off against the Falcons this weekend, districts have explored giving students the twenty-four hours off to vote. And here in Philly, Central High Schoolhouse social studies teacher Thomas Quinn isn't just instruction kids the value of voting—he'southward on a mission to register every single eligible Philly student to do so through Philly Youth Vote .

Quinn says he and his colleagues were particularly decorated over the summertime: At the by few school board meetings, students, teachers, and system members take come with impassioned requests to implement a voter registration policy in all high schools. The board responded favorably, organizing a professional person development solar day and partner fair , which Quinn co-facilitated with the Office of Curriculum and Teaching, Depict the Lines PA, Side by side Gen PA, Vote that Jawn , and the Metropolis Commissioners' Office.

"We drew 53 teachers from 33 schools, and 17 partnering organizations," Quinn shares. Every teacher present, he says, walked out with more than enough registration forms for every student turning eighteen this year! "Nosotros have just [a few weeks] before the October 7th registration deadline, and then we're all fix to become started!" Students and educators can get more details on getting their school involved hither .

According to Quinn, the Lath of Teaching passed a resolution recognizing September 24th as National Voter Registration Twenty-four hour period; many schools will hold special programs on that mean solar day. " The lath has been very supportive of what nosotros're asking," says Quinn. Now, Quinn and supporters want the Board to go 1 step further and implement a permanent policy that encourages a year-round effort to engage students in the electoral procedure. They are bringing their efforts to the board meeting on September 19th. (Check out their testimonials here .)

And go this: Commissioner Al Schmidt's function sent Quinn data that shows a 157 percent increase in xviii-year-sometime turnout , which is particularly absurd because getting people to testify upward on Election Twenty-four hour period is the hardest part, and the youth vote is showing the greatest gains of whatsoever age group in the city.

Personally, I'm a big fan of making Election Day a national holiday. And, just remember: If every Eagles fan voted and got one unregistered buddy to register by checking out the info hither , nosotros could all be heard, loud and clear. Mummers gear optional.

Next week we'll face off against Detroit, and I'll tell yous most some awesome local music programs—and why music is so meaningful to me.

Philadelphia Eagles	Atlanta Falcons
# of students 203,225	# of students 51,550
% graduated high school 69	% graduated high school fourscore
% population with a BA 26	% population with a BA 53
$ per pupil 15,000	$ per pupil 13,000
% students economically disadvantaged 73	% students economically disadvantaged 74
% students of color 86	% students of color 85
% teachers of color 34	% teachers of colour 78
% students in charter schools 34	% students in lease schools 19
% English linguistic communication learners 12	% English language learners 5

geterloortambel.blogspot.com

Source: https://thephiladelphiacitizen.org/jason-kelce-eagles-education-season-week-2/

Share this post