Volunteer Opportunities for Youth Engagement
How it all started:
Volunteers for the League of Women Voters of Maine (also known as LWVME) initiated the High School Engagement Project in early 2020.
Short term goal:
The Get Out the Vote project targets high school students in Maine. We’re turning teens into voters by helping them to register to vote.
Long term goal:
Build a diverse army of Gen Z, whose members are civically engaged and pumped to help GOTV in all elections. Ultimately, it will be the members themselves who run the Council and determine how best to engage their peers to become lifelong voters and participate in other activities that strengthen our democracy.
Join the Youth Council!
Get involved with our brand-spanking-new Youth Council. It’s a growing group of students who take charge of Getting Out the Vote in their schools and communities. Take the lead in turning GenZ into lifetime voters so that we can work together to strengthen our democracy.
When you join up, you’ll represent the League of Women Voters of Maine. The League is a grassroots, nonpartisan organization with 100 years of history, and the Youth Council is a also nonpartisan. Once you’re a part of the Council, you’ll have access to all the League’s resources.
Okay, but why should you join?
Aside from registering new voters — that’s pretty important! — the Council helps build your resume of leadership skills that can be helpful when applying to college or for a job. Written commendations will be available for those who successfully complete a project.
Join the Youth Council now by completing this form. Once you join the Council, there is a whole range of volunteer activities to choose from. Click here to sign up!
Questions? Contact Stephanie Clifford. Email: stephanie@baldaccicommunications.com
Download and print:
Volunteer Opportunities:
VOLUNTEER OPTION #1
Recruit new Council members
Inform fellow students who might be interested in volunteer activities to sign up here, or refer such students to us directly and we will follow up.
This fall help us build the Youth Council with 50 students who are highly motivated to educate their peers about the importance of voting. After this election season, we will continue to build the Council to have an ongoing role in GOTV for future elections and taking on roles to strengthen our democracy.
VOLUNTEER OPTION #2
Friend to Friend
Learn how to reach out to your family, friends and school peers to encourage them to register and vote. Even better, train your friends to do the same!
The Friend to Friend Project is our answer to the challenge of encouraging youth to vote during a pandemic that has limited our ability to talk to people face-to-face. This project empowers students to do voter engagement work within their own networks of acquaintances - and to do it strategically and effectively.
Friend to Friend uses a simple relational organizing method designed to teach students how to mobilize their own networks for a cause. In this case, the cause is GOTV. Furthermore, this is a valuable leadership skill that can be transferred to other projects of civic engagement. The training can also be used to “train the trainer” if students want to expand their impact even further by training other youth.
VOLUNTEER OPTION #3
Instagram Stories
Create a short video on Instagram about voting and share it with your followers and with us.
Make a short video of yourself explaining why voting is important, encouraging others to register and vote, or other messages around voting this fall. Share it with your followers and with us, so we can share it as well.
VOLUNTEER OPTION #4
Do your own social media campaign
Reach out to your own network through Instagram, Facebook and Twitter to remind friends to register and vote.
Our team will share with you a social media kit which makes it easy for you to send your own reminders to your friends and followers during this election season.
VOLUNTEER OPTION #5
Internships
Let us know if you are interested in applying for a paid internship with the League. Internships can be short-term and others may extend throughout the school year.
LWVME internships in voter engagement, voter education, and youth voter outreach are available immediately. Internships require a few flexible hours a week working in support of League projects, and interns receive a small stipend. All of the League’s work is non-partisan; they are committed to ensuring that everyone is able to vote and has access to good information when they do.
VOLUNTEER OPTION #6
Speakers Bureau
Let us know if you would like to be a speaker who is available to speak to your peers about the importance of voting and the mechanics of doing so.
The purpose of the Speakers Bureau is to offer in person and/or virtual speakers to youth groups and high school classes in Maine. Speakers are trained to discuss the importance of the youth vote as well as how to register and vote. Representing the LWVME, all the speakers are non-partisan in their approach. The short-term goal of the Speakers Bureau is to set up speaking engagements in September and October focused on GOTV for the 2020 November election.
VOLUNTEER OPTION #7
Be a poll worker
Poll workers are in short supply in some towns. You may be eligible for volunteer or paid work before the election or at the polls themselves.
If considering poll work is an interest of yours, we will refer to “Youthwork Makes the Boothwork”, a project focused on recruiting youth poll workers, ensuring that everyone is able to vote and has access to good information when they do.
