ALLIANCE, Ohio — At the 2021 ALL IN Challenge Awards Ceremony held to recognize colleges and universities committed to increasing college student voting rates, the University of Mount Union received a silver seal for achieving a student rate between 60 and 70% in the 2020 Presidential Election. 

Mount Union was also recognized at the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Votes Awards Ceremony, where it took home Best Action Plan in a tie with Otterbein University. Developing a nonpartisan democratic engagement action plan is a key component of both participating in the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge and institutionalizing this work on campuses. 

“At Mount Union we work diligently to prepare students to be responsible citizens which includes our non-partisan voter engagement and education,” said Abby Schroeder, director of the Regula Center. “Through our action plan and implementation, we have been able to continuously offer programming for the entire Mount Union community. We are proud to be part of the ALL IN network and are honored to be recognized for our successes around democratic engagement.” 

“The rise in voter participation and engagement for college students in last year’s presidential election amidst a global pandemic was tremendous and will undoubtedly be tied to the tireless efforts of the dedicated students, faculty, administrators, and partner organizations that are part of the ALL IN Challenge network,” said Jen Domagal-Goldman, executive director of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. “The hard work of these trailblazing honorees will help support many of the country’s future leaders in fulfilling the equitable, engaged vision of democracy to which we aspire.”

More than 840 institutions enrolling close to nine million students participate in the ALL IN Challenge since its launch in 2016.

Mount Union has done several initiatives to increase voter turnout, with the Regula Center spearheading efforts related to Mount Union’s action plan for civic engagement and will continue to find unique ways to engage college students and the greater Alliance community. 

Learn more about voter engagement at Mount Union by visiting moununtion.edu/umuvotes.