10 days left to Register to Vote

by: Jason Springer

Sat Oct 04, 2008 at 08:16:08 PM EDT

Noting that about 20,000 to 30,000 of the state's approximately 400,000 high school students either are or will turn 18 in time to vote for the upcoming Nov. 4 election, Davy said high school teachers and principals have a unique opportunity this year to incorporate discussions about the importance of voting into their curriculum and to register new voters.

"Commissioner Davy has made a strong commitment to reaching out to districts to make sure they are aware of their legal responsibility to provide voter registration forms to all eligible high school students as required under state law," said Chen,
noting that he and Davy met jointly with county superintendents this summer and that DOE has contacted every public school district with instructions on how to meet this legal mandate.

Specifically, the 1985 law mandates the distribution of voter registration materials and instructional materials "describing the role of a citizen and the importance of voting," said Chen. The law also applies to private and charter schools with students eligible to vote.