Featured Post from Southern Utah University

SUU Receives Silver Seal for Excellence in Student Voter Engagement

Nov 19, 2019

2 min

Mary Bennett

Presented by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, Southern Utah University has been honored with a silver seal for achieving a student voting rate of 35.9% in the 2018 midterm elections. 


“The Leavitt Center is proud to receive this national recognition on behalf of SUU,” said Mary Bennett, director of the Michael O. Leavitt Center for Politics & Public Service at SUU. “We will continue our efforts to inspire faculty, staff, and students to participate in the 2020 election. We are committed to reduce voter apathy, increase engagement, and graduate civic-minded students prepared to solve the country’s, and the world’s, most pressing challenges.”


Overall student participation in elections has increased from the 2014 midterm election to the recent 2018 midterm election. And according to the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement, voter turnout at the more than 1,000 institutions participating in the study increased by 21 points from 19% to 40%. At SUU, the voter rate increased by 18.7 points between 2014 and 2018. 


Led by Bennett, the Michael O. Leavitt Center for Politics & Public Service works to increase the civic engagement of students at SUU. Through an action plan to increase civic engagement, the Leavitt Center is working to increase voter turnout rates. The first long-term goal of the Leavitt Center is to increase voter turnout by 10% in the 2020 election. 


Voter turnout numbers are considerably higher during the national elections, so in 2018 the focus was to increase voter education and engagement with state and local elections. To support this goal, the Leavitt Center hosts at least two state or local candidates each semester and has at least one event that covers local politics. 


“We are excited to honor SUU with an ALL IN Challenge silver seal,” said Jennifer Domagal-Goldman, executive director of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. “Institutions like SUU are changing the culture on campus by institutionalizing nonpartisan democratic engagement efforts that are resulting in the incredible student voter turnout rates that we’ve seen across the country.”


The ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge encourages higher education institutions to help students form the habits of active and informed citizenship, and make democratic participation a core value on their campus. More than 560 campuses, enrolling more than 6.2 million students, have joined the Challenge since its launch in summer 2016.


Bennett’s professional experience spans over 25 years in a range of Washington, DC institutions including the US House of Representatives, and the US Senate. She is familiar with the media and available for an interview. Simply visit her profile.



Connect with:
Mary Bennett

Mary Bennett

Director of the Micheal O. Leavitt Center for Politics and Public Service

Specializing in U.S. campaigns and elections, government relations, and public policy and advocacy

Utah Political CandidatesUtah Legislative BodyPolitical CommunicationCongressional CampaignsRegulatory Policy for Financial Industries

You might also like...

Check out some other posts from Southern Utah University

2 min

Billion dollar business - does winning matter anymore in the NFL?

A recent rankings released by Sportco earlier this month showed that the Dallas Cowboys have come the first sports franchise to hit the 10 billion dollar mark. It was announcement that took the sports media by storm. The Cowboys, owned by Jerry Jones, were valued at $10.32 billion, far and away the most valuable franchise in the league and an increase of over a billion dollars on the previous estimate of $9.2 billion in February. Jones, 81, purchased ‘America’s Team’ in 1989 for an estimated $140 million (roughly $355 million in 2024) and has turned the organization into a financial powerhouse. Also serving as the team’s general manager, he oversaw initial success and helped create one of the 90s’ most dominant teams, winning the Super Bowl in the 1992, 1993 and 1995 seasons. However, the Cowboys have struggled to replicate that magic in recent years and have only mustered five playoff wins in the 28 years since they last hoisted the Lombardi Trophy. Most recently, Dallas suffered an embarrassing loss in the Wild Card round against the Green Bay Packers in the 2023 postseason, despite finishing as the second seed in the NFC and having MVP runner-up Dak Prescott on the roster. August 14 - CNN Professional sports is big business. No longer are legacy teams family-owned but most franchises are now conglomerates or essentially companies that operate like any other in corporate America. As franchises continue to evolve - what's changed? Does winning championships matter anymore? Have TV and streaming deals made seats sales less relevant? Does location matter anymore for local fanbases? Will this bubble one day burst? There are a lot of questions out there and if you're looking for an expert to help with your coverage - we can help. Dr. David Berri has spent the last two decades researching sports and economics, while publishing works on a variety of topics including the evaluation of players and coaches, competitive balance, the drafting of players, labor disputes, the NCAA, gender wage gap in sports, and distribution of wealth and power. Simply click on his icon now to arrange an interview today.

3 min

Dr. Kevin Stein Receives Fulbright Specialist Award to Spain at Universidad de Murcia

Southern Utah University is pleased to announce Dr. Kevin A. Stein has received a Fulbright Specialist Award to consult as an expert in communication and journalism at the Universidad de Murcia in Spain. Dr. Stein is a professor of communication, director of the Master of Arts in Professional Communication program, liaison for the SUU Office of International Affairs, and published author.  His project will aim to exchange knowledge and establish partnerships benefiting participants, institutions and communities both in the U.S. and overseas through a variety of educational and training activities within the field of communication. "It is such a tremendous honor at this stage of my career to be deemed worthy of a Fulbright Specialist Award,” said Stein. “I've worked with several Fulbright Scholars over the years and have always aspired to do what they've done in creating meaningful cultural connections between SUU and our partner universities abroad." Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected based on academic and professional achievement, as well as a record of service and demonstrated leadership in their respective fields. The Fulbright Program is designed to build lasting connections between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. Dr. Stein joins over 800 U.S. citizens who will teach, conduct research, and/or provide expertise abroad for the 2024-2025 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program. Having grown up in a culturally diverse region of central California, Dr. Stein finds the opportunities provided by this award very personally important to him. "My Jewish bloodline makes me particularly sensitive to the intolerance and racial strife facing many regions of the world,” said Stein. “Because of this strong sense of my own heritage, I believe I have an inherent desire to generate understanding and sensitivity between people of differing cultures.” Stein’s expertise mainly focuses on the rhetoric of attack (kategoria), defense (apologia) and persuasive responses to defense (antapologia). He has published numerous articles addressing a variety of apologetic contexts, as well as books and peer-reviewed articles on different types of political campaign messages. He is the webmaster for Public Apology Central, which archives crisis summaries, transcripts, videos and audio of public apologies (apologia) of public figures in all facets of media. Dr. Stein has presented his academic work at regional, national and international conferences, including presentations at the University of Athens in Greece and the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. While on a year-long sabbatical in China, Dr. Stein directed the American Studies Center at Hunan Normal University in Changsha. Since then he has returned several times as a liaison for the SUU Office of International Affairs and as a teacher in a dual degree communication program offered by Wuhan Polytechnic University and SUU. Dr. Stein has since spent his time directing the MAPC program and participating in SUU's innovative Jumpstart program, which had seven faculty from different disciplines teaching freshmen students all their general education classes as one cohort. “I would like my students to learn the basic theories and research methods in our field and to apply those skills in professional communication industries,” said Stein. “When they leave our program they should be masters in the construction and critical analysis of messages, whether they be in public relations, journalism, politics or business.” Other SUU faculty members who have received the Fulbright Scholar Award include David Schwalb (Ukraine), Jim Aton (China and Indonesia), Jon Smith (Portugal and Swaziland) and Bryce Christensen (Taiwan). Interested in learning more about Dr. Stein's work?  Simply click on his icon now to connect and arrange an interview today.

2 min

Rita Osborn Recognized by National Rural Health Association

Rita Osborn, MBA, has been named this year's Outstanding Educator by the National Rural Health Association (NRHA). This award is given to an individual who has dedicated their time and talents to improving the health and well-being of others. Osborn and other awardees will be honored during the NRHA’s 47th Annual Rural Health Conference on May 9, 2024, in New Orleans, Louisiana. “We’re extremely proud of this year’s winners, particularly because of the additional challenges rural health professionals face as we navigate unique and ever-changing environments,” said NRHA CEO Alan Morgan. “They have each made tremendous strides to advance rural health care, and we’re confident they will continue to help improve the lives of rural Americans.” Osborn is the Utah Center for Rural Health Executive Director based at Southern Utah University (SUU). In addition, she leads the Rural Health Association of Utah and directs the Southwest Utah Area Health Education Program. In the quarter-century she has spent promoting health education, Osborn founded the Rural Utah Health Scholars Program that assists students pursuing health careers, and she continues to be instrumental in assisting medical professionals who wish to practice in rural areas. "I am humbled by this award and appreciate colleagues who nominated me, along with supportive members of my team," Osborn said. "I have enjoyed helping students pursue careers in health care, and it brings me even greater satisfaction when they choose to practice in rural Utah." The Utah Center for Rural Health works to promote and enhance the quality of rural health through leadership, advocacy, coalition building and education, and to affect policy and legislation. Looking to know more about rural health?  Then let us help. Ria Osborne is available to speak with media - simply click on her icon now to arrange an interview today.

View all posts
Powered by