Boulder County – In partnership with Boulder Valley and St. Vrain Valley School Districts, Boulder County Elections is excited to celebrate this week, April 1-5, 2024 as our 5^th annual “High School Student Voter Registration Awareness Week.” The effort aims to promote voter registration and pre-registration for high school students. In Colorado, students as young as 16 may pre-register to vote.

During Student Voter Registration Awareness Week and the weeks following, schools are asked to encourage and promote voter registration and provide voting information by:

• Making voter registration accessible and convenient and/or by holding voter registration events
• Displaying educational flyers with registration information (supplied by Boulder County Elections)
• Leveraging formal and trusted communication channels for voter registration information – including school emails, loudspeaker announcements, and classroom presentations
• Inviting Boulder County Elections to host a registration table during school hours or present during a class or at an assembly

“It is hard to believe it has been five years since we launched this initiative,” stated Boulder County Clerk & Recorder Molly Fitzpatrick. “BVSD and SVVSD administration have been excellent partners supporting our efforts to identify and cultivate staff members at various high schools throughout our county to become our valued voter registration liaisons. These liaisons are then trained to help students get registered and excited about voting. Colorado, and Boulder County in particular, has higher than average youth voter turnout and I credit our partnership with our schools as an instrumental part of that equation.”

“Cultivating civic engagement and the importance of voting are essential values we must instill in our students as they age into adulthood,” said Kahle Charles, SVVSD Assistant Superintendent of Assessment, Curriculum, and Instruction. “Our collaboration with Boulder County Elections makes it easier to have them prepared and enthusiastic to cast their first ballot when the time comes."

“Celebrating High School Student Voter Registration Awareness week is a great way for our schools to engage our students in the fundamental right to vote and why it is so impactful to their future,” remarked Nicole Rajpal, BVSD Board of Education President. “The voting process can be highly daunting to a new voter. But telling someone their vote matters and getting them registered is the first step.”

The week was first designated and celebrated in early February 2020, in preparation for the March Presidential Primary. A major goal of the week was to raise awareness that eligible 17-year-olds (those who would turn 18 by the November election) could vote in that year’s primary (note: this right was later revoked by ballot measure in November 2020). The partnership with schools helped lead to a 61% turnout in the March Presidential Primary among 17-year-olds in Boulder County (in contrast to a statewide turnout for the same age group of 43%). Additionally, our high school voter registration program and engagement earned Boulder County Elections a U.S. Election Assistance Commission Clearinghouse Award for outstanding innovation in elections.

In 2021, the week celebration was moved to early April to better equip graduating seniors with the information they needed to know about their voter registration and voting options if leaving home for college or elsewhere.

"Facilitating convenient and accessible voter registration in every high school across Colorado is part of my vision as Clerk and as President of the Colorado County Clerks Association," stated Fitzpatrick. "While Boulder County may be the first to establish this week celebration, I hope to make it easier for other counties to replicate our success and engage local high schools. As always, we extend our gratitude to BVSD and SVVSD for their ongoing partnership and for spearheading efforts to empower our students in becoming actively engaged citizens."

For more information on Student Voter Registration Awareness Week and to find registration documents and other supporting materials for schools, see https://boco.org/HSRegInfo.