Kids Voting USA
Kids Voting USA (KVUSA) is a national nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that teaches students about the concepts of citizenship, civic responsibility, democracy and the importance of political participation. The program combines innovative classroom activities with an authentic voting experience to help students gain the knowledge, skills and confidence to be active citizens. The program is delivered to over 500 communities across the country through an affiliate network. The 100 plus affiliates (in 28 states) reach 4.3 million students; 200,000 teachers in 10,600 schools; and 17,000 voter precincts annually. The organization, founded in 1988 in Arizona, became a national nonprofit in 1992.
The emphasis on giving students an “authentic” voting experience separates the Kids Voting USA program from similar, so-called “mock election” programs. This authenticity is achieved primarily by familiarizing students with a ballot that includes both candidates and issues that are on official adult ballots. The method of voting also contributes to the authenticity of the Kids Voting USA experience. For most students this means going to the official polls with their parents on Election Day. Increasingly, it also involves less publicly visible forms of voting.
Kids Voting USA civic activities introduce students to the concepts of citizenship in the earliest grades and continue throughout their school years. This ongoing education develops strong skills and habits for living in a democracy. Civics Alive!, Kids Voting USA’s K–12 classroom activities, offers learn-by-doing activities that empower students to develop critical-thinking skills, reflect on their role and responsibilities as citizens, and confidently participate in the civic life of our nation. Destination Democracy is designed to complement Civics Alive! and to reach high school students who are approaching adulthood and “official” voter status. The service-learning activities focus on meaningful civic engagement through mentoring younger students, registering voters, working for political candidates, and researching and debating public policy issues, to name just a few. Both sets of activities are designed to work with the current classroom social studies curriculum so teachers can choose activities that are appropriate to lesson plans and that fit time requirements. These activities are tools to help teachers meet the standards outlined in the National Curriculum Standards for Social Studies as well as state curriculum standards for social studies.
In recent years, Kids Voting USA welcomed New Profit and Doubletree as new national sponsors. (Long standing national sponsors include State Farm and the Knight Foundation.) Existing Kids Voting USA affiliates grew considerably over the last 4 years. The number of students participating in Kids Voting USA programming and the 2004 general election were considerably higher than those of just four years prior. Example: In 2002 Kids Voting Minnesota served 159,000 students. In 2004 it served 211,000 students – an increase of 32.7% in just two years. Additionally, Kids Voting Minnesota’s student election turnout was up 117% over the 2000 general election.
Goals
- Strengthen existing Kids Voting USA affiliates across the country (including increasing the number of students served and those participating in general and local elections).
- Expand the affiliate network.
- Expand the funding base.
Contact Information
Tonya R. Robinson
Special Projects Manager
Kids Voting USA
Superstition Office Plaza, 3933 S. McClintock Dr., Suite 505
Tempe, Arizona 85282
480-921-3727 x 211
Fax: 480-921-4008
Email: trobinson@kidsvotingusa.org
www.kidsvotingusa.org