Vaccination Update

Due to City of Philadelphia mandates, all students, faculty and staff must be fully vaccinated. To register for in-person or hybrid classes, students need to be fully vaccinated or have an approved exemption. Students who are not vaccinated or do not have an approved exemption are able to register for fully online courses. Please see our College COVID-19 Updates for more information and visit our Virtual Student Resource Center for support.

Division of Access and Community Engagement

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#CCP Votes

Why Vote?

  • You have the right to be heard and the power to vote during the election
  • Your vote matters because you are important and so are the needs of your family and friends
  • You can support solutions to the problems you see affecting your community
  • You can make sure your elected officials represent you
  • You can impact the direction of the entire country

What You Can Do

 Register to Vote

  • Students, register to vote by May 2, 2022, at StudentVote.org
  • Not a student or live outside of PA? Get started here.

Educate Yourself

The upcoming election is on Tuesday, May 17, 2022!

  • Find your polling place
  • The last day to request a mail-in ballot is May 10, 2022
  • Have you voted on the new voting machines? Check out this video.
  • Who are your legislators?
  • In this upcoming election, we’ll be casting our ballot for Governor, U.S. Senate and U.S. House. Learn more here.

Volunteer or serve as a #CCPVotes Student Fellow

Get Out the VOTE on May 17, 2022 and Hashtag #CCPVOTES

  • Become an Election Worker—Poll workers open voting machines at the beginning of the day, check voters into the polling place, support the functioning of the polling place, and close everything up at the end of the night. Sign up to be a poll worker.
  • Shuttle people to and from the polls—Some people don’t vote because they don’t have a car, are elderly or disabled and can’t drive themselves, or don’t have access to public transportation to get to their polling location. You can help!
  • Help get out the vote—if you'd like to support a candidate, get in touch with their local campaign office to see how you can help by posting signs, making calls or going door to door.

#CCPVotes Spring 2022 Events

Join us for our first voter education series event:

A Beginner's Guide on How to Get Involved in Politics

March 2 at 1 p.m. | Join us on Zoom

The upcoming election on May 17, 2022, has us thinking about how we can get involved in local politics ourselves. This session is a panel presentation on how you can begin getting involved in your government. Learn more about how others have started their journey and what opportunities there are to get involved in your city. 

Speakers:

  • Abu Edwards, CEO of MIA Strategies LLC
  • Andre del Valle, Director of Government Affairs at the PA Apartment Association
  • Dom Miller, Chief of Staff to Councilmember Isaiah Thomas 
  • Mikecia Witherspoon, CCP Government Relations Officer, former Deputy Chief of Staff in the Mayor's Office and Special Assistant to the Mayor
  • Kyle Turley, Eastern PA Political Organizer, One Pennsylvania

#CCPVotes Voter Registration Tables on Campus

It is important that you register to vote for this election. The officials you vote for will serve Philadelphia communities and oversee Pennsylvania affairs for the next few years. All semester, we’ll be stationed around campus to help you with registration, general inquiries and information on the upcoming election:

  • March 15 and 29, April 12 and 26, and May 2
  • 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
  • Main Campus (Regional Center dates coming soon!)

Become an Election Worker

March 29 at 11 a.m. | Join Us on Zoom

Poll workers open voting machines at the beginning of the day, check voters into the polling place, support the functioning of the polling place and close everything up at the end of the night. Sign up to be a poll worker.

Who's on Your Ballot?

April 6 at 1 p.m. | Join Us on Zoom

Did you know there's an election in Philadelphia every six months? Are you prepared for Philadelphia's primary election on May 17, 2022? Learn who's on your ballot and why this election is important.

Enough is Enough: Breaking Down Gerrymandering & Redistricting

April 12 at 11 a.m. | Join Us on Zoom

What is gerrymandering and what does it mean for you, your family and community? Learn more at our Enough is Enough session!

Faculty, email us at institute@ccp.edu to request a Get Out the Vote classroom presentation with one of our #CCPVotes volunteers

More Resources

Watch, read and listen to these resources to learn more:

Previous Events

Vote Early, A New Civic Holiday! 

Wednesday, October 20, 11 a.m. | View the recording here

Vote Early Day was founded by MTV as a new civic holiday focused on helping every voter know how, where, and when they can vote early. Launched in the midst of a global pandemic, Vote Early Day became a critical resource to ensure no voter had to choose between their health and casting their ballot. In its first celebration, Vote Early Day attracted 134 premier partners and 2,700 general partners from every state in the nation. Over 3,000,000 voters cast their ballots on Vote Early Day alone.

#CCPVotes Kick Off: "Philly Elections Count"

September 28, 2021

Sixty-percent of eligible voters are never asked to register. You don’t have that excuse. In this virtual session, participants learned about how to get more engaged with #CCPVotes, what’s at stake for the upcoming local election and how to get registered if you’re not already! Special guests included: 

  • Dr. Generals, President, Community College of Philadelphia
  • Michelle Lopez, Manager, Institute for Community Engagement and Civic Leadership 
  • Commissioner Omar Sabir, City of Philadelphia
  • Ahmad Mitchell, Campus Vote Project Democracy Mentor 
  • NextGen America, Philadelphia Representative

Octavius Catto's Journey to Voting Equity: Then and Now  

Watch a Recording of this Event

Learn about Catto’s most infamous legacy—the right to vote for all people. He was an educator and activist that was assassinated on Election Day 1871 as he urged government officials to protect the newly gained right for Black men to vote. Moderated by Dr. Aubria Nance, Associate Director of the Catto Scholarship, speakers included Dr. Generals, President, Community College of Philadelphia; Dr. April Voltz, Executive Director, Catto Scholarship; Amy Cohen, Education Director, History Making Productions; and Otis Hackney, Chief Education Officer, City of Philadelphia.

Who's on Your Ballot?

Watch a recording of this event

Did you know there's an election in Philadelphia every six months? Watch this informative session with Committee of Seventy and City Commissioner Omar Sabir to learn who was on your ballot in the May 2021 elections and why the election is important.

Speakers:

  • Omar Sabir, Commissioner, City of Philadelphia
  • David Thornburg, President and CEO, Committee of Seventy
  • Moderated by Mikecia Witherspoon, Government Relations Officer

A Beginner's Guide on How to Get Involved in Politics

April 6, 2021

In this session, a panel presentation shared how to begin getting involved in your government.

Speakers:

  • Mia Velez, Philadelphia Youth Commission
  • Julian Domanico, Millennial Advisory Committee
  • Marc Meola, Assistant Professor, Library and Committee Person
  • Claire Galpern, One PA
  • Ahmad Mitchell, #CCPVotes Student Fellow and Co-moderator
  • Heather Sizemore, #CCPVotes Student Fellow and Co-moderator

How to Have Civil Discourse about Our Past, Present and Future

April 12, 2021

In this session, faculty and students learned how to have civil discourse in the classroom. Honorable Cynthia M. Rufe, founder of the Civics Beyond the Classroom workshop series, taught us how to engage in conversation about the state of our country. Judge Rufe covered the practice of respectful dialogue to enhance the understanding of an issue. Participants were informed of the distinction between partisanship and nonpartisanship. Finally, resources were shared to help faculty and students practice these conversations. Students and faculty had the opportunity to break out into groups to practice the rules and conversation of civil discourse.

Speakers:

  • Honorable Cynthia M. Rufe, United States District Judge for the Eastern District of PA
  • Rachael Houston, Faculty Resources Coordinator, Campus Election Engagement Project 
  • Liz Canapary, Assistant Professor, Criminal Justice
  • Ahmad Mitchell, Campus Vote Project Democracy Mentor
  • Moderated by Michelle Lopez, Manager, Institute for Community Engagement and Civic Leadership