Laurie D. Willis
Livingstone College News Service
The third and final debate between President Barack Obama and Republican hopeful Mitt Romney is tonight.
But at Livingstone College, many students have already decided for whom they’re going to vote.
In fact, Livingstone College athletes will board a bus around 11 a.m. today to head over to the Rowan County Public Library and the former DSS building on Mahaley Avenue to cast their ballots.
“I think it’s important that we vote,” said Dorian Edwards, a senior defensive tackle for the Blue Bears. “The reason why people vote early is they already know how each candidate stands on a particular issue. For college students, one of our main concerns is which candidate supports legislation that is relevant to us. Examples are Pell grants and low interest rates on student loans.”
Because of a prior commitment at Johnson C. Smith University, Edwards won’t vote with his teammates today; however, he still plans to cast his ballot before the Nov. 6 election.
Exercising the right
“I look forward to exercising my right to vote and plan to do so this week,” said Edwards, Livingstone’s Student Government Association President. “I’m confident most Livingstone students will also cast their ballot – either during the early voting process or on Election Day.”
That Livingstone students will vote en masse is something Dr. M.J. Simms-Maddox is counting on. The chairwoman of the college’s History and Political Science Department, Simms-Maddox has been working tirelessly to prepare the Livingstone campus for the 2012 elections. She particularly wants to ensure Livingstone students fully understand their constitutional right to vote, when, where, why and how to vote in Salisbury-Rowan, the decorum of local polling places and the use of paper ballots.
Simms-Maddox spent time recently during a weekly assembly showing students the sample ballot and explaining the voting process to them. She stressed the students may vote for whom they want. She simply wants them to vote.
“Right now our concern is to get the students out to vote. In so doing, we’re offering them rides to the polls,” Simms-Maddox said. “We’re trying to get as high a voter turnout from Livingstone College as possible from now until the end of early voting.”
Several areas churches, in conjunction with GET OUT THE VOTE and the NAACP, are pitching in to help Livingstone students get to the polls during early voting, Simms-Maddox said. Those churches include Crown in Glory Lutheran Church, First Calvary Baptist Church, Gethsemane Missionary Baptist Church, Moore’s Chapel A.M.E. Zion Church, Soldiers Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church, Tower of Power United Holy Church and Mount Zion Baptist Church.
Simms-Maddox said she has noticed a change in the mindset of Livingstone student voters this year.
“What I noticed in the 2008 election is the students were anxious about the historical significance of that election,” she said. “This time around they seem more issue oriented, and I think that’s a good thing. They’re learning the role between the president and the Congress with respect to making laws, especially laws that affect their lives.”
Issues of interest
Financial aid and the economy are among issues paramount to students.
“When they graduate they want a job and not just any job,” Simms-Maddox said. “They want a job in their chosen profession. That seems to be the prevailing concern with the students that I’ve talked to.”
Besides ensuring students are registered to vote, Simms-Maddox and other faculty have also exposed them to the elections process.
On Oct. 3, the night of the first presidential debate, Livingstone hosted a Candidates Forum for people running for everything from local offices to Congress. The forum was held in The Hilliard Room in the J.W. Hood Building on campus and was open to the public.
On Oct. 11, the night of the vice president debate, the college held a watch party and evaluation. On Oct. 16, the night of the second presidential debate, another watch party and evaluation was held, both in The Hilliard Room.
Watch party
Tonight the Livingstone College Media Group, under the direction of Dr. Herman J. Felton Jr., is holding a presidential debate watch party in Varick Auditorium. It begins at 8 p.m. and is open to the public.
Livingstone College President Dr. Jimmy R. Jenkins Sr. implemented a holistic learning approach when he assumed the institution’s top administrative post in 2006. Included among the Holistic College modules are political action and social responsibility.
Jenkins has been pleased by the college’s voting efforts.
“We encourage all of our students to register to vote by educating them on the struggles various groups of people endured just to obtain that right,” Jenkins said. “It is critically important that our students exercise their right to vote, and I’m grateful for the efforts of Dr. Simms-Maddox and other faculty members, as well as some staff members, to educate our students and help get them to the polls. I’m also thankful for the area churches that are assisting us in this very important endeavor.”