Each Friday in Leadership, the first class of the ATA College Prep school day that includes all students, the group gathers to discuss current events and selections from the recent news cycle. Led by Math and Science Lead Bryan Rutherford, the students have recently unpacked things like the roles and responsibilities of serving on a jury, the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, the wide variety of elected offices on the local, state, and national level, and the nearly 30 year struggle of Macedonia.

In the weeks leading up to the election, Mr. Rutherford uses parts of Leadership for a seminar called ‘Educated Voter’, where all CP students 17 years and 10 months go through the process of registering to vote and learning some of the foundational information necessary to become active, informed voters.

Keith Ingram, Director of the Elections Division of the Office of the Secretary of State, recently praised ATA College Prep for being ‘ahead of the curve’ with seminars like these, weekly cultural events meetings in Leadership, and even providing transportation to the polls during Early Voting and on Election Day.

Ingram’s office is currently increasing their push to educate and register first-time voters, and Mr. Rutherford is on board.

“I’ve heard it said that a democratic system ensures that a nation gets exactly the government that it deserves,” Rutherford said. “Our system only works if citizens participate actively by getting informed about the issues and candidates and then showing up to vote. People have fought and died for the right to have a say in the government of their communities, and it’s pretty sad that most Texans eligible to vote don’t bother to turn out for most of our elections. At ATACP we are working to raise engaged, responsible citizens who take ownership of their communities at every level, and one of the ways I do that is by holding seminars for the seventeen- and eighteen-year-old students about upcoming elections and registering them to vote, as Texas says all secondary schools are required to do (though most don’t). I also talk the kids through civics in our weekly discussions of current events so that they can connect things they may hear adults talking about to their lives and futures and start to see how politics affects them.”

Midterm Elections will take place Tuesday, November 6, 2018, with Early Voting beginning Monday, October 22, 2018. The final day to register to vote in that election is Tuesday, October 9, 2018. Want to know what will be on your ballot? Visit www.VoteTexas.gov