Citizenship and Leadership

by Betsy Chapman

One of the things we hope all our new students will learn more about is inclusive citizenship and leadership. In other words, how can our students be civilly engaged? How can they develop cultural competency? How can they grow as leaders? Are there issues of import to our society that they want to reflect on in greater depth?

Oh and by the way, it is a big election year – and I will issue my annual disclaimer that I would never tell your students WHO to vote for (they must vote their own conscience) but I will always tell them that they SHOULD vote, and do so being fully informed of the candidates and the issues of the day.

Happily, we have a lot of help in terms of voter education and civic engagement: Deacs Decide is a highly collaborative, campus-wide political engagement project. The program aims to increase student voter registration and voter turnout while raising awareness about issues at stake in elections; increase students’ capacity to engage in constructive and critical discussion; build an understanding of the underpinnings of democracy and how democratic institutions function, and increase student’s capacity to distinguish between reliable and unreliable political information.

Your Deacs have no doubt seen a lot of Deacs Decide and staff volunteers asking them if they have registered to vote and have a voting plan. This is because we want them to get in the habit now of being an active participant in our democratic processes! Students can visit our Voting in the 2024 Election page for information on how to vote in NC (if they choose to do that), or how to vote absentee from their home state (if so, act fast). If you haven’t talked to your ’28 about the importance of voting, please ask them about their voting plan (not who they are voting for, but they have a plan and will vote).

In terms of helping students consider important issues of leadership, Wake Forest has a phenomenal Program for Leadership and Character that students can plug into for discussion groups for the second half of the semester. These are wonderful ways for students to meet a smaller group of fellow students and engage deeply in reflection on a topic of shared interest.

Encourage your Deac to consider these weighty topics and get involved!

Contact

To contact the Office of Family Engagement or Family Communications, please visit our contact page.

 

For mental health assistance: 336-758-CARE (2273) is a service that ensures someone will always be available (i.e., 24/7 M-F, weekends and university holidays) to provide caring and thoughtful consultation services for Wake Forest students in need of mental health assistance or support. You can also visit we.wfu.edu for resources.