UTSA receives national recognition for engaging student voters
The University of Texas at San Antonio has received the Advancing Student Success and Retention Award from the Students Learn Students Vote (SLSV) Coalition, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to increasing voter participation among college students. UTSA was one of 12 organizations and universities across the country recognized for their efforts to increase voter turnout leading up to the 2024 election.
UTSA received the award for its Rowdy Corps Civic Scholars program and their campus-wide efforts to strengthen nonpartisan democratic engagement during the Fall 2024 semester. Funded by the Ask Every Student Implementation Grant and hosted by the SLSV Coalition and the Federal Work-Study Program, the Rowdy Corps Civic Scholars provide eligible students with opportunities to help increase voter participation in local, state, and federal elections. The group focuses on eliminating barriers to voting, increasing student engagement and sharing resources about elections and voting requirements.
“UTSA’s Rowdy Corps Civic Scholars is an excellent example of Advancing Student Success and Retention by offering a paid opportunity for students to become nonpartisan voting ambassadors and providing accessible training, leadership, networking, and professional development opportunities for the students involved,” said SLSV Coalition Co-Founder and Executive Director Clarissa Unger. “The 2024 SLSV Awardees are shining examples of nonpartisan organizations and college campuses that truly walk the walk and live the values and guiding principles that our collaborative movement is built upon.”
The 2024 Rowdy Corps Civic Scholars cohort included undergraduate students Antonio Camarillo-Cohen, a senior English major; Nathaniel Galvan, a freshman business major; Ariana Leal, a junior psychology major; Zachary Nepote, a senior economics major; and Klaritza Vaca, a senior global affairs major.
The group, along with UTSA Civic Leadership Program Specialist Noelani Cubillos-Sanchez, traveled to the University of Maryland in November to present their work and accept their award at the annual National Student Vote Summit.
From left: Camarillo-Cohen, Vaca, Galvan, Cubillos-Sanchez, and Nepote at the National Student Vote Summit at the University of Maryland in November.
“This award demonstrates our commitment to developing students’ civic capacity by providing civic leadership opportunities in collaboration with campus and community partners through the Rowdy Votes Community of Practice,” said Maria Alejandro, program director for the UTSA Center for Civic and Community-Engaged Leadership. “Our programming supports Roadrunners in becoming well-informed and engaged citizens who can make a difference in their communities.”
In addition to the SLSV Coalition Advancing Student Success and Retention Award, UTSA has also received several awards from ALL IN, a national nonprofit organization for nonpartisan student engagement in democracy. UTSA was designated as a 2024 ALL IN Most Engaged Campus for College Student Voting and was recognized multiple times by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge.
The Rowdy Corps Civic Scholars program is part of the UTSA Center for Civic and Community-Engaged Leadership, which leads the university’s voter engagement initiatives by promoting voter registration, education and participation. The center, housed within the Career-Engaged Learning division of UTSA Student Success, also provides students, faculty and staff with opportunities to engage in community-based experiential learning and scholarship.
EXPLORE FURTHER
- Visit the RowdyVOTES website for voting information and resources specifically for the UTSA community.
- Follow @UTSAEngaged on Instagram and Facebook.
