Rarely do we see the Northeastern community come together for a common cause. From athletic events to Springfest concerts, students, staff and alumni only sporadically find reasons to come together as a community.
But one initiative has managed to conquer this unfamiliar ground: NUVotes.
NUVotes, Northeastern’s initiative to get students to vote for the next president of the United States, is organized primarily of the Resident Student Association, the Council for University Programs, the NU Marketing Association, the NU Democrats and the NU Republicans. A number of other students have also been involved, including members of Greek Life, the Husky Energy Action Team, Student Government Association (SGA) and NU Students for Choice.
These groups put their individual work on hold to work as a team. It is impressive to see student groups like the NU Democrats and the NU Republicans put their differences aside and rally the student body for the upcoming election.
The college population is often seen as a demographic that can make a difference in an election. NUVotes succeeded in informing students and getting them involved in an issue that will affect them in the future.
Kudos to everyone involved simply for the events they put on. Some of the shows are arguably the best ones on campus so far this year.
Along with SGA, the Student Alumni Association, the Homecoming Committee, the Office of Alumni Relations and the Office for Student Affairs, NUVotes brought one of the biggest acts Northeastern has seen on campus in years. More than 5,000 people packed Matthews Arena, Friday to see “The Daily Show” host Jon Stewart.
The event was a massive hit. Despite some glitches in the ticket-selling system, the show sold out quickly.
Even if it was for only one night, students felt a sense of community and belonging on campus. Even if it was just for two hours, students, alumni, parents and staff were all Huskies, laughing to Stewart’s jokes.
All of the events put on by NUVotes have been above par. Last month, Jerry Greenfield of Ben ‘ Jerry’s Homemade Ice Cream visited campus. Also last month Capitol Steps, a musical comedy troupe, graced the stage of Blackman Auditorium, leaving the audience laughing to tears at their political jokes.
At each event, members of NUVotes were even passing out what college students love most: free stuff. This included round, yellow pins that say “Vote November 4” and T-shirts of an elephant holding the tale of a donkey who in turn is holding the tail of a husky. (Get it?)
Most importantly, through the tabling events, NUVotes has distributed more than 400 voter registration forms to students.
Upcoming events for NUVotes include “The Great Media Debate: How the Media Can Sway Votes and Win Elections” between two communication studies professors on Thursday and the debate between the NU Democrats and the NU Republicans on Oct. 30.
Hats off to NUVotes for getting an enormous amount of people involved in such an important election – and for doing it in a non-partisan manner. NUVotes made students active and involved in politics at such a crucial time.
Hopefully future student groups will use NUVotes as a model for a well-run program. NUVotes has raised the bar in terms of programming. It is a difficult act to follow, but Northeastern needs more efforts like this. Let’s all hope we see some more events in the future where Northeastern will feel like a family.
