Civic Education | University School of the Lowcountry

Annual Civics and Election Day Prep

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Becoming an informed voter is a lifelong process of learning. AT USL, we do not shy away from examining politics. We do examine the platforms and policies of all parties. We invite guest speakers from every political party to join us on campus, share their ideas, and answer our questions. Through every election cycle, we perform exit polling. Our yearly exit poll project on Election Day, during which students conduct exit polls across the county and neighboring precincts to make statistical predictions based on their collected data. In addition, Upper School students can participate as a poll worker on election day.

Exit Polling

The annual exit polling LOTC each fall is a traditional Learning Outside the Classroom event where students head out to dozens of precincts to conduct exit polls of registered voters.

Youth Poll Worker Initiative

Upper School Students participate in the Youth Poll Worker Program to train and work the polls on election day at various sites providing first-hand experience into the election and voting process.

Guest Speakers

USL’s civic education program is a great example of our belief in learning from the experts. USL invites every candidate from all political parties represented to share their platform and for students to listen and ask questions.

Annual Election Day Exit Polling LOTC

University School students conduct exit polls across the country in neighboring precincts to make statistical predictions based on their collected data. This enables students to see first hand the difference in turnout rates for the many types of elections, from Congressional to Mayoral, regional, and statewide, occurring in both even-numbered years or odd-numbered years, respectively. We employ this hands on civics project practice to produce educated and active stewards at the local and national levels.

In a blog post from 2018, our Head of School, Jason Kreutner, shared his thoughts on the importance of our students’ participation in exit polling.

Jennie Stephens, Center for Heirs’ Property Preservation CEO, helps USL students learn about heirs’ property issues for LOTC

usl jennie stephens center for heirs property preservation lotc

On September 30, Dr. Jennie Stephens, CEO of the Center for Heirs’ Property Preservation, based in Charleston, spoke with our students. She also fielded questions from our students.

Our school has a solid civics and understanding government component: we watch the news every day to stay abreast of current events. We invited Dr. Stephens to speak following the Highway 41 issue and its possible impact on the historic Phillips African-American settlement community. The interest in learning more about the heirs’ property issue evolved naturally.

This presentation was part of our annual Fall exploration of government and elections and culminates in our exit polling project on Election Day. Students also heard from candidates from various political parties, political scientists, and others. Talking with them enables our students to form their own opinions based on research and first-hand experience – key concepts in developing students who will think critically for themselves.

The Center is a nonprofit protecting heirs’ property and promoting its sustainable use to provide increased economic benefit to historically underserved families. Ms. Stephans has been with Heirs since its inception in 2005. She has spent over 25 years in the nonprofit field.

To learn more about Ms. Stephens’s work and the Heirs’ Property Preservation, visit their website at https://www.heirsproperty.org/.

College of Charleston Professor, Dr. Kendra Stewart, speaks for LOTC

usl lotc dr kendra stewart cofc prof oct 2020

On September 23, Dr. Kendra Stewart, Professor and Director of the Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Center for Livable Communities at the College of Charleston spoke with our students about federalism and all of the types of government that exist in America. She was very engaging, beginning her presentation with a photo ID quiz of political leaders. A Q&A session capped the presentation, and topics included COVID response under federalism, carrot and stick approaches by the national government, and more. Our students are fortunate to have had the expertise of other members of the College of Charleston Department of Political Science over the years, including Gibbs Knotts in 2019!

In addition to teaching at the College of Charleston and running the Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Center for Livable Communities, Dr. Stewart is a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA) and serves on the boards of several local professional and non-profit organizations.

To learn more about Dr. Stewart, visit her College of Charleston faculty page at: https://polisci.cofc.edu/about/faculty-staff-listing/stewart-kendra.php.

Why USL Students Conduct Exit Polls and Watch the News

Jason Kreutner, founder and Head of School at University School of the Lowcountry, shared these insights with the USL community via email on October 7, 2018:

In order to prepare to be better-informed citizens of the community and the world, University School students annually conduct Election Day exit polls across the Lowcountry and then make informed predictions based on their results. Students watch the news every day and stay apprised of developments in the world. They explore elections and the democratic process, and this means hearing from different candidates, learning about different parties, and exploring issues of governance and civics.

Exit polling each year enables students to talk with different voters in different precincts across the Lowcountry and see firsthand the ebb and flow of turnout rates for the different types of elections because of the pattern of Congressional (and occasionally statewide and more) races in even-numbered years and municipal elections in odd-numbered years.

I read this article, “Civics Education Helps Create Young Voters and Activists,” in The Atlantic a few days ago, and it is a reminder as to how valuable this educational component is and how it is preparing our students to be active and informed citizens. It is also a sad reflection on the current state of civics education in America and how Americans must seek improvement for our young people and future voters.