Pitt-Greensburg to kick off national Voter Commitment Campaign for NEA

The Pitt-Greensburg Chapter of the Student Pennsylvania State Education Association (SPSEA) will host two events to kick off the national Voter Commitment Campaign for the National Education Association (NEA).

Mike Crossey, president of the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) will present “Education & Politics in Pennsylvania” on Monday, September 10, at 5:30 p.m. in Village Hall 118. This event is free and open to the public.

Members of Pitt-Greensburg’s Chapters of SPSEA will then kick off the NEA's national Voter Commitment Campaign by hosting a table in Chambers Hall on Wednesday, September 12, and Thursday, September 13, as a means to share information and increase awareness among the student body. Voter registration forms will be available to students.

Public education, both K-12 and higher education, is under attack both locally and nationwide. The SPSEA, as part of the National Education Association (NEA) is working to raise awareness, especially among college students, about this issue so that students will vote for candidates who support public education. The SPSEA is asking voters to make a commitment to vote for pro-education candidates. The Voter Commitment Campaign is non-partisan.

Members of Pitt-Greensburg’s SPSEA chapter are committed to ensuring that the voices of students and young people are heard loud and clear in this upcoming election.

This non-partisan event is aimed at getting students thinking and talking about the issues that are important to them.  As future educators, these students see an inherent value to those issues surrounding the education system in this country.  They believe it is vital that young voters think about which educational issues are important to them, where they stand on them, and not only vote, but make a well-educated vote on Election Day.  Whether the issue is increasing tuition costs, student loan debt, or K-12 issues like education funding, class size, and the testing, SPSEA wants the students at Pitt-Greensburg to know where the candidates stand.

“Here at NEA, we commend the Pitt-Greensburg SPSEA for leading the effort in our campaign to get college students committed to vote in the 2012 election. We are running active Voter Commitment Campaigns across the United States, and I’m excited to be kicking off the event at Pitt-Greensburg. It speaks volumes about their dedication to lead the profession and look out for the best interest of their community, state, and country,” said David Tjaden, chair of the National Education Association-Student Program.

Earlier this summer, Pitt-Greensburg was represented by five students at the National Education Association conference held in Washington, DC. The Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) accepts only 10 college-level students to attend the national conference, so the fact the 50 percent of the student representation consisted of Pitt-Greensburg students is notable. The Pitt-Greensburg students strategically worked to be nominated for the national conference selection process, and then marketed their nomination to members who were eligible to vote on their attendance. This was after the Pitt-Greensburg students made a point of meeting as many people as possible at the Pennsylvania State Conference so that when the voting/selection process began, their names would be familiar and they would be more likely to receive a vote.