(Santa Ana, Calif.) — Santa Ana College (SAC) received a silver seal at the 2019 ALL IN Challenge Awards Ceremony, which recognizes colleges and universities committed to increasing college student voting rates. SAC achieved a student rate between 30 percent and 39 percent.
Student participation in elections has increased from the 2014 midterm election to the 2018 midterm election, according to the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement, an initiative of Tufts University’s Institute for Democracy & Higher Education. Santa Ana College’s turnout from 2014 to 2018 jumped 18.5 points to a voting rate of 33.7 percent.
“Santa Ana College is proud to receive this national recognition,” said Santa Ana College President Dr. Linda Rose, “and our faculty, staff, administrators, and students continue to work to increase engagement.”
“Institutions like Santa Ana College are changing culture on campus by institutionalizing nonpartisan democratic engagement efforts,” said Jennifer Domagal-Goldman, executive director of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. “This results in the incredible student voter turnout rates that we’ve seen across the country.”
The ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge is a nonpartisan, national initiative recognizing and supporting campuses as they work to increase nonpartisan democratic engagement and full student voter participation. The Challenge encourages higher education institutions to help students form the habits of active and informed citizenship, making democratic participation a core value on their campus. More than 560 campuses have joined the Challenge since its launch in summer 2016.
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About Santa Ana College
Santa Ana College (SAC), which turned 100 years old in 2015, serves about 27,000 students each semester at its main campus in Santa Ana. The college prepares students for transfer to four-year institutions and provides invaluable workforce training and customized training for business and industry. In addition, another 11,000 students are served through the college’s School of Continuing Education located at Centennial Education Center. Ranked as one of the nation’s top two-year colleges awarding associate degrees to Latino and Asian students, the college is also recognized throughout the state for its comprehensive workforce training programs for nurses, firefighters, law enforcement and other medical personnel. SAC is one of two comprehensive colleges under the auspices of the Rancho Santiago Community College District.
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