In the months leading up to the midterm elections on Nov. 3rd, there has been an onslaught of election-related information growing increasingly visible in public discourse. Yet, despite the attention surrounding election season, many young people feel uninformed and unfamiliar with the candidates up for election, the issues at stake, and even the general logistics of voting as an informed citizen. 

For young people, particularly those who have just reached the age at which they are able to vote or are still too young to participate in elections, the political landscape can seem complex and incredibly difficult to navigate. The Kentucky Student Voice Team brought together students from across the state to discuss their experiences with civic education in schools, reflect on their knowledge of the electoral process, and consider how young people can contribute to their communities even if they are too young to vote. The conversation revealed numerous gaps in how schools approach educating students about civic matters and the many ways in which students are trying to make their voices heard in a complicated political landscape. 

This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Election Day is on Tuesday, so it's really coming up on us. Have elections been discussed in your schools at all, and if so, how?

Pinky, DuPont Manual: We were weirdly talking about this in government class just today. So, sort of what we were asked is, do we have any specific candidates we were voting for? And weirdly enough, there were only three of us who actually had a candidate in mind. This one room [had] juniors and seniors, so people could actually vote, so I thought that was interesting. Everyone, me included, was sort of like…there is a candidate I specifically do not want to vote for.

Rosa, Scott County: Our YClub normally does a voter registration thing, and I think they had a table set up at one of the senior meetings. But if you weren't at that meeting, or if you're a junior who's old enough, then I don't think anybody else really heard anything about it from anywhere else. I feel like normally it's like a bigger deal, so I don't know why we didn't do as much this year.

Shaivi, Manual: I found that nobody actually knows what they're [elections] are for except a select few that are actually voting this year. A lot of my friends that are seniors said that they didn't know what it was for last year. Since they're voting this year, they've kind of gotten to know about [elections]. So I'm thinking maybe it's kind of the age where you're at…that you kind of start to learn about those things. I feel like it's kind of only centered around learning it when you're going to vote, rather than when you're younger.

Emma, Daviess County: Our student council was trying to plan either a registration or just kind of like an informational meeting, but then that ended up falling through. But our Y Chapter is now planning a voter registration drive for the spring around graduation.

Greta, Henry Clay: I haven't heard a lot from people in my grade because we're not old enough to vote yet. I have some classes where I'm in with a lot of seniors, and there are teachers who always encourage their students to vote and stuff. My government teacher from freshman year got these voter handout things that have information about all the candidates in Lexington, because we're having a big, local election for our mayor this year.. And I thought it was interesting that she was giving them out to freshmen who are pretty young; they can't vote yet. But I thought it was a good thing, because those leaders represent them too, and it's good to start learning how to research when you're that age because it really creeps up on you, voting age. I actually just wrote an article for my school newspaper about the mayoral election and ways that students can get involved and just go out and meet these people because there are so many opportunities that I don't feel like get enough attention, at least in my town. 

Charlie, Danville: I feel like I've had a pretty similar experience at my school. Nobody has talked about it that much. I think a month ago, we had a lady that was set up during lunch, and it was like a voter registration table. But there are only a couple of people in my grade that are actually old enough to register to vote, so she kind of just got passed by, and no one really cared. But I do feel like I know very little about the local elections. 

Anya, Lexington Catholic: They had a table set up at our lunch too, and not a lot of seniors actually registered. I remember, there [were] some seniors asking like, what's the difference between Democratic and Republican Party, which is very interesting. You don't take history freshman year. Some kids take AP Human Geography freshman year. We start sophomore year, so by senior year they're taking AP Gov or like just government in general. So, by then, you should know Democratic or Republican.

Pinky, Manual: This might be like really specific to Louisville, but I know some people have been saying you see more signs for judicial elections than you do for presidential ones, and a lot of people know a lot more about these candidates, just because they are better at campaigning to a smaller district, and people don't even know about the mayor race and the mayor race is going on. So weirdly enough, judge elections are big right now.

What do you wish your school had taught you about elections, the government in general, or how you can get involved in your community in a civic way?

Anya: I wish they taught us more things within our history class, especially around like election day. I feel like not a lot of history teachers, especially for being in U.S. history and government, [are] not teaching how the whole election process is really, and just understanding how the process is, because that's something that I had to self-teach myself. It's something that I didn't really learn in school.

Hattie, Rowan County: I think a lot of the things they tell us are more based off of history or a little bit more vague. I feel like a lot of the stuff they tell us is about the history of voting or the history of our government structures, but we're never really filled in about how we as citizens fit into that and the specifics of how to go vote. Like, what you said, what a ballot looks like. So I just wish that they kind of went into more detail and framed it as us as individuals, how we do those things, as opposed to just like the overarching structures of the government as a whole.

Greta: So I think that everyone, every student in Kentucky, should be required to look at a ballot and be taught what it means, where you fill things in, because that’s just…when you think about it, it's just kind of common sense. So I think that's something that all schools should do.‍

Shaivi: One thing that I wish my school would do, and like all districts in general, is kind of stress the importance of voting and how to effectively vote and not just do what other people are doing around you. I also feel like I wish they would stress the importance of actually being civically engaged.

So many of my friends just aren't going to vote because they feel like…or aren't going to do anything related to these kinds of systems, because they feel like they don't have a voice in it. I wish schools would kind of stress the importance of us as young people and that we do have a voice in these institutions.

Lottie, Pikeville: I wish history classes and stuff in schools would go more in depth about all of the different elections. This is the first year we've talked about it, and really the only thing that we discuss is like, you know, there's a presidential election every four years. You vote, that's that. And a lot of people in my area, especially, they're like, it doesn't really reach our area. I don't know why they feel like that, but that's what a lot of people tell me. They're like, “Oh, it doesn't reach this area. My vote doesn't matter, so I'm just not going to vote at all.” And they think that, especially because they just think about the presidential election. I think you should always vote, but they also just don't know about primaries and local elections and any of that stuff. People keep asking me; they're like, "[Why] do people keep talking about Tuesday?" I'm like, "You're supposed to vote." And people have genuinely asked me if it's like for Dancing with the Stars…which, I love Dancing with the Stars, but that's not what we're voting for. So I think people just don't know why they should be voting or what they're voting for, other than voting every four years for the presidential election. 

Saachi: I remember learning in, like, first grade, literally learning about the importance of doing your own research and voting, and I literally have not learned about it since. So I feel like we need to prioritize that a lot, because a lot of people are honestly just lazy. I feel like if we understood why every person's vote matters, it doesn't matter what state you're in, then people would vote more.‍

Emma: This is actually something that I think my AP Gov teacher did well. I noticed a lot of people were saying that they feel like we don't get to current politics, or they don't hear a lot about local elections. And my government teacher, for the first 10 to 15 minutes of every class, which, we have hour and a half long classes, so I know it might need to be less than that depending on how long classes are.

But we would have current political events, and we would just talk about that for the first 10 to 20 minutes of class and relate that to what we've already learned and concepts we're learning. So that kept us really well informed about local political events or things going on politically currently, right now, in modern-day, and kind of how that relates to what we're learning in class. 

Charlie: I also actually had that in my AP Gov class.  It was really helpful, and it was especially helpful in understanding what was going on in the community and in Kentucky, because I was not really reading any news sources or seeing anything on social media about Danville or Kentucky in general. So that was really informative, because I just was never really exposed to that sort of thing. 

Greta: I took AP Gov during the last presidential election, so that's mainly what we focused on election-wise. And now that Lexington is coming up to a huge local election — our current mayor is running for her last term — it's kind of dramatic because there's so much drama around the snowstorms and stuff, and school being closed. I feel like I don't know anything about local elections. I wish we spent even just two or three class periods just talking about how local elections work because it just feels so different than federal elections.

What are ways you feel you can be civically involved or involved in your community as a young person? 

Shaivi: This is basic, but obviously telling those around you to vote and educating people on what the elections are for. Something I've been doing is phone banking a lot, which is really fun because I've never done that until like this year. So if you really like a candidate, you could just phone bank for them. I feel like that's really making a difference. You can also attend campaigns and local events, so I think that's something you could do.‍

Greta: Definitely like talking to friends who are older who can vote in the next elections about stuff like that, and also just staying informed about the elections, local, federal, whatever, and just learning as much as you can.

I think when you're young or just younger than voting age, you just get caught up in this idea of it doesn't apply to me because I can't vote, so why should I care? But I mean, these are the people who are representing you, and I think you could definitely… it would definitely help to just know who they are, what they stand for, stuff like that. I think it could help you when you actually do get old enough. 

Rosa: I also feel like, just the way that we normally do voter registration is we have students sign up to work the tables and stuff like that. So, getting involved in anything that your school or your community is doing for the people who can vote is a good way to get involved even before you can vote.

Charlie: When I read the question, I was like, I can't really think of that many ways in which I feel like I can immediately become civically engaged within my community. Mostly, what I thought about was joining clubs or writing articles or something, and there are small things like just reading the news and staying informed with that sort of thing. But I feel like it definitely is a lacking area: ways that young people really can be civically engaged. So I think some of the lack of responses is also pretty telling. 

How much have you learned about civics in school, and do you feel that it was comprehensive? 

Greta: I don't think I've learned nearly as much as I should about civic engagement. Like, I didn't really start hearing that term civic engagement until sophomore year last year, when my friend became the president of the civics club at our school, and she started talking about it a lot. Before that, I had taken the required civics test, and it was kind of silly because it was just kind of easy, and they were like really straightforward questions. I think that it should be a requirement [or] like a huge priority, honestly, when it comes to these laws in education of what students are required to do to graduate. I feel pretty strongly about that, and I honestly wish I had learned more. And I just haven't had the opportunity really.

Hattie: I kind of feel that civics aren't taken super seriously at my school, or at least that we could use more emphasis. The only absolute focused civics thing we've done is the civics exam, and even that, it was like, oh yeah, just take it till you get a good score. You had infinite repeats. We have kind of a basic-level like government geography classes that are kind of integrated into our curriculum and social studies classes.

But there's very rarely anything in-depth like what I was saying earlier, an in-depth guide to how to be a citizen and how to kind of accomplish your civic duties for your community and to be civically engaged in your community. And I think there's definitely not a lot of focus on that at my school, and I think that we could do better for sure.

Charlie: One thing I know a lot of people talk about [is] making all students in Kentucky complete a whole civics course for the high school year. I'm curious how you all feel about that, because on the one hand I obviously think that's like a good thing, but I also hesitate because I take six classes a day, and every class I've taken in high school, I wanted to take for my transcript. So I'm like, I don't know if I want an extra class to really have to deal with. I'm not sure if every school does this, but if you have an advisory or a flex homeroom period at the beginning of the day, we do social-emotional learning sort of stuff there. I feel like since every student in at least our high school has to be in that period, it feels like a good place to educate people on civic matters. 

Rosa: I think I'd be kind of mad if my schedule got messed up because I'm very specific about the classes that I take. I think I like the idea of doing it in an advisory time. But then also, if it was just even if it's just a short…like not necessarily a year-long class, but a short course that's like integrated into the regular history classes, so that you're getting it in the class that you signed up for, but you're still getting the civic education.

Shaivi: I think a lot of students would be upset if their schedule had been messed up or they got rid of a free block because they needed [were] mandated to take a civics course. We do have a civics class.. I think if I think it should be a requirement just like VA, like visual arts, everyone needs to take it. It doesn't matter what year, but it should be like a graduation requirement to take the civics class instead of just taking the civics test. But this is so interesting because I'm writing a paper on this; it’s about civics education, and one or two of the biggest issues that legislation kind of had when they considered making…or if they were to consider making civics education a mandate, was that one it would take away from the more important subjects, like math and science and writing and English and all that. There was a study, and I guess the materials and resources weren't adequate enough. So I think there's just a lot more thinking that goes into like a civics class beyond just putting it into student schedules.

Pinky: I took civics last year, and I'm taking government this year, and they're really very different classes. Civics is all about how you as a person can fit into the community;  government is just like, oh yeah, this is the history of it. Speaking as somebody from a school with a lot of magnet requirements that you have to take, not all of which I've liked, I honestly don't…I think it would be very possible to include civics education, but I think it's just about, I guess, how good your teachers are. That's what it all comes down to.. I think all of us can talk about a bad math teacher, a bad history teacher, and a bad civics teacher might be worse than no civics education at all.

Have you ever felt like an issue affecting you, your community, or your school has not been taken seriously by decision makers? 

Greta: So I go to a Fayette County public school, and there's been a lot of issues with higher-ups, like the superintendent.. Teachers talk about it a lot. There's been a lot of discourse about it in our local media, and I have a friend who reports on the board meetings, and we don't really get any say, I feel like, in what's going on with our school district; our opinions don't necessarily get shared, and I honestly don't feel like they're valued. And there are effects on our school district that really hurt students, especially lately. We've had to start paying for a lot of things that we didn't used to have to pay for, like the PSAT.  Some of this stuff might be like a statewide thing. But there have been a lot of things, like class fees and stuff, that kids have to pay for now, which they used to not, which discourages people from taking AP classes. I'm supposed to talk to my parents about it tonight, and I'm kind of nervous because I'm gonna have to ask them to give me $400 to just take an AP test, and I know it's supposed to be cheaper than an actual college class, but $100, if it scares me, then it's scaring a lot of other people. I think students need to be heard, and their voices need to be heard about this because it's affecting them the most.

Charlie: One thing I will just jump in and say about the AP tests is I was filling out the form today for which AP tests I wanted to take, and they all cost $99 at my school. I'm not sure if this is state or if this is my school-specific or what, but it said that if you pass the AP test, you don't have to pay for it. ‍

Anya: A lot of kids our age don't vote until later down in life, like 30s, per se. Because a lot of adults say like, oh, we're the…we're the face of the future. Yet, when we try to advocate for our future, they just shut it down immediately.

And I think that's why a lot of people don't really say their opinion, because they're scared they're gonna get shut down about it. And a lot of my friends feel that same way too. That they're, like I don't know how you always like advocating for something. I could never like…it's really, really upsetting to see that because it should be like a really basic thing to do, just to speak up for what you believe in, because it's truly a privilege to like being able to do that, and I think that's why a lot of kids like don't vote or really say all their opinions on stuff.

Hattie: For me, there's just a lot of small things that make students' lives a little harder that build up over time, and I feel like when those things are called out, the administration often doubles down on them instead of changing them. For example, this year they've changed the schedule so that we have half an hour of homeroom every day, but that means that now we only have four-minute passing periods, and they keep some of the bathrooms locked. Or other things like taking down like hand-painted student murals to put up AI posters, just things that students have been complaining about a lot because they're like, it makes us feel a bit less appreciated and very like, I don't want to say authoritarian, but it feels like we're kind of…it's getting more and more restrictive on our schedules and on our freedom and like our expression, and we've started like a lighthouse team thing now, which is kind of like a student government sort of thing, but a lot of our suggestions, I feel like are just going to get swept under the rug again. 

Rosa: I feel like it's a lot better this year, but last year we had a bit of a teacher scandal, and it was a bit bad, and they didn't really do anything about it. And I just felt like that was a hot mess, and I felt like nothing happened until these students' parents took it to the state police. They had to go really far to get anything done about it, and so I just feel like that kind of gives the impression that they're not really caring for the students at that point.

Anya: Our school does a Halloween tradition every year, and the seniors deck out…they fully decorate the school. They all get together for a theme, and then they run it with administration to make sure it's appropriate, and they decorate the entire school on Halloween. They[student government]  wanted the theme to be zombies, and they were advocating for it. Everybody wanted to do it, and they're like, "Oh no, no, we're not doing it." And there's no reason for it, and they completely changed the theme. I was hearing this, and I was like, okay, yeah, this is why kids don't give out ideas anymore. That situation itself is exactly why kids don't speak up on problems that are in the school. never do anything about it. 

Shaivi: We have something called Slate, and you can kind of run to be elected for your class president and class vice president, and they took it away. I feel like being student body president and student body vice president, being on the board, I feel like it is just such a unique experience, and I feel like a lot of people would have benefited from it. So now, it's these two teachers that are kind of making all the decisions for the junior class, and all we get to do is kind of just decorate. So many of the things that were going to happen at our pep rally aren't happening anymore, and they've been tradition[s], and students really enjoy them, and it's not happening anymore because these teachers just don't agree with it, and none of us had a say in it.