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Sticker shock
By LOGAN NEILL When Hernando County voters went to the polls last week, they got those familiar "I Voted" stickers in exchange for their ballots. But 11,882 of those stickers made their way back four days later, thanks to some enterprising young students. In all, students from seven Hernando elementary schools participated in a contest to see which school could collect the most stickers. By all accounts, it was a success, said Hernando Supervisor of Elections community relations coordinator Michelle Card. "It was a huge hit," said Card. "We just had no idea that kids would be so enthusiastic about it." Indeed, by Card's estimate, about 20 percent of the stickers handed out last week were collected and tallied by the schools over three days. Chocachatti Elementary was declared the decisive winner, with Brooksville Elementary coming in second. For their winning effort, each Chocachatti student gets a goody bag filled with prizes, candy and coupons from local businesses. But, more importantly, said Card, was what they hopefully gained from the experience. "The goal of the contest was to get children and families to really consider how important the voting process is to the community," said Card. "Hopefully, it helped motivate some people to go to the polls who might not otherwise had done so." Card said the contest was partly inspired by the Council for Excellence in Government, a non-partisan organization that launched a recent campaign called "Take Your Kids To Vote." Hernando election officials decided that a contest might be a way to further emphasize the message. In October, the office sent letters to all 10 elementary schools inviting students to take part. From there, the campaign jumped into high gear. At Chocachatti and Pine Grove Elementary, student government members launched a campaign to drum up support. "We just kept telling kids that it would be really great to win it because it would make our school look good," said fifth-grader Jack Diven, who serves as president of Chocachatti's student government. Their message was heard, especially in the younger grades. In fact, the 20 students in Laurie Cirigliano's first grade class amassed 147 stickers alone. "It just goes to show you how motivated kids can be," said Card. "I think that it sends a positive message to young people that even they can be included in our voting process and that they can make a difference."
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From today's Hernando Times Editorial Letters |
