Civics Champions: Northeast student registrars help Rockets receive voting information

March 10, 2025

Nadia, Jocelyn, Chloe and Jaylen opened voting doors for Northeast High School students by playing key roles in a civic engagement event.
 
The four Northeast seniors served as deputized registrars at the 2025 voter registration drive. The annual activity encourages students to become part of Nebraska’s civic process. The Northeast quartet gave fellow Rockets information about voting eligibility, upcoming elections and how the voting process works.
 
Nadia and Jocelyn said they wanted to help their classmates learn more about their vote-casting abilities. They said increasing the number of students who can participate in future elections would make Nebraska stronger.
 
“A lot of students are eligible to vote, but they just don’t because they don’t know that this happens at school,” Nadia said. “They’re like, ‘Will I have to find free time and go to a spot to do it?’ I’m like, ‘No, it’s in school. You can legit come to the table and I’ll be there to help you.’”
 
“A lot of people don’t have the access or the opportunities to know exactly what to do,” Jocelyn said. “Some people don’t have that support, and being here at school makes it a lot easier for them. I think that’s a really good thing.”
 
The annual events meet one prong of the 2024-29 Lincoln Public Schools Strategic Plan, which is to prepare students for future civic engagement. LPS has hosted drives each spring for more than two decades. In 2024, seven high schools and the Bryan Community Focus Program provided registration opportunities.
 
All Nebraska residents who are 18 years old and currently live in the county where they are planning to register are eligible. Nebraska residents who are currently 17 years old but will turn 18 by the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November can also register. Each voter registration application is returned to the county election commissioner’s office. Students who register this winter will be eligible to vote in Lincoln’s primary and general elections April 8 and May 6.
 
LPS social studies teachers work with the Lancaster County Election Commission to deputize student registrars. They follow all Nebraska state statutes regarding training for deputy registrars. After becoming registered voters, each student takes an oath that they will support federal and state constitutions during the nonpartisan process.
 
State statute requires deputy registrars to work in teams of at least two people. They provide nonpartisan information like directories from the League of Women Voters of Lincoln-Lancaster County, and they answer questions about registration forms and state laws.
 
Northeast teachers Logan Becher and Cody Watkins encouraged Nadia, Jocelyn, Chloe and Jaylen to consider becoming student registrars. Becher works with Government and Politics (GoPo) classes and Watkins leads GoPo and Advanced Placement (AP) Government courses.
 
Chloe said she was thrilled when Watkins asked if she wanted to join the team. She has been interested in community involvement for many years and plans to major in political science in college.
 
“I just really believe in civic engagement,” Chloe said. “I want to be able to tell other people about how important it is and why they should be involved in it.”
 
Jocelyn had a similar experience in Becher’s class. She expressed her desire to get involved when he mentioned the volunteer opportunity to her.
 
“He was teaching the unit and I was really interested,” Jocelyn said. “My mom has always gotten me interested in the voting process. She’s big on voting, so I just thought this would be a good chance to help with that.”
 
Jaylen said he wanted to become a student registrar because of how vital he believes voter participation is. Chloe agreed and said she wanted to support everyone walking through Northeast’s building.
 
“I think just really engaging and connecting with other students and helping them to work through getting registered is really important,” Chloe said.
 
Nadia felt LPS has done a good job of preparing her for the voting process. She said having background information about America’s constitutional republic setup helped her talk to her fellow Rockets as a registrar. Teachers like Becher and Watkins inform their classes how the citizen-centered model of governance has worked in the country for nearly 250 years.
 
“That’s why GoPo is a required class,” Nadia said. “Imagine hearing people say voting is a no-no, and then you never do it because you were never taught how to and you were never given that opportunity. That’s why this is so important.”
 
Jocelyn said the Student Vote project also influenced her decision to become a registrar. Student Vote happens every two years at LPS and provides students with the opportunity to participate in a mock election. The activity’s goal is to help them learn how to become more informed citizens once they reach adulthood.
 
“We get to come into the library as a whole student body and get to vote, and then they announce what the results are,” Jocelyn said. “You get to see how much you can impact just by the student body alone. I just thought it was really cool.”
 
Nadia said she feels a sense of duty to promote civic engagement on her school’s campus. She said becoming a student registrar was the best way for her to fulfill that responsibility.
 
“I don’t want to live a life of silence,” Nadia said. “I don’t want to have a voice but choose not to use it.”
 
Visit home.lps.org/socialstudies to learn more about social studies education opportunities and community resources for LPS students and parents.
 
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