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Owens Receives Grant from National Voter Registration Day to Celebrate Election Day

Owens Community College has been selected to receive a 2026 Election Day Grant by the National Voter Registration Day and its sponsor, Levi Strauss & Co. The $750 grant will be used to purchase pizza for members of the Owens community to celebrate Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 3 in College Hall.

Owens students Mariana Machado, left, and Katarina Staffe at the Cakes with Blake voter engagement event. Owens has received another grant from National Voter Registration Day.

The college’s Center for Campus and Community Connections will host the pizza party and also hold a Plan Your Vote event on Monday, Nov. 2 in Heritage Hall. Individuals can stop by anytime between 9 a.m.-4 p.m. to plan their ballot and confirm their voting location. Non-partisan candidate and issue resources will be available at the event.

“Making sure our students are informed and active members of the communities is an important piece of their education at Owens,” said Krista Kiessling, director of the Center for Campus and Community Connections. “Through our efforts, we’ve helped many students register to vote and understand the resources available to them. We’re grateful to the National Voter Registration Day for their support and belief in what we’re doing.”

Owens was awarded the Carnegie Classification for Community Engagement in 2015, with reclassification in 2020 and 2026. The college was also designated as a Voter Friendly Campus by the Fair Election Center’s Campus Vote Project and NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education.

In 2023, Owens created a Voter Engagement Team that consists of faculty and staff. That team meets quarterly to discuss strategies for increasing student voter engagement on campus and increasing voter education.

The Voter Engagement Team has helped increase student voter engagement at Owens, tracked by a National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement survey. From 2014 to 2020, the voting rate for registered voters at Owens increased from 24.1 percent to 70.5. During that same time, the registration rate increased from 67.5 percent to 79.

Owens has previously received grants from National Voter Registration Day to fund the college’s Cakes with Blake and Project HOPE voter registration and education events.

More information on voter resources offered by Owens can be found at owens.edu/vote.