Obama wins student votes in mock election
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Photo by senior Tyler Martin
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 Illinois Senator Barack Obama was the clear winner of the Social Studies Department's mock election, which was held on Oct. 27 and 28.
While Obama raked in 558 of the 895 total votes among students and staff, John McCain received 295 votes.
Students voted on 14 issues and offices during the election, organized by government teachers Morgan Allen, Ben Kalb, and Eli Rollman.
"Many [students] enjoyed the process," said Rebecca Holst, Social Studies Department leader. "They liked the authenticity of registering and then voting on a different day."
Students and staff filled out forms to register to vote earlier this month. To help prepare students to make an informed decision, many classes discussed the election on a regular basis, read articles on the candidates and issues, and explored relevant web sites. Global Studies classes conducted research, and then wrote about the candidates whose viewpoints aligned with their own.
Holst said it is important for teachers to create learning opportunities to promote civic awareness and participation. Students even experienced real-life voting issues through the mock election, including people opting not to vote at all, people trying to vote twice, and people trying to use others' identification to cast a ballet.
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