UMSL is encouraging all eligible students, faculty and staff members to fulfill their civic responsibility and vote in the Nov. 3 election. UMSL students voted at a 17 percent higher rate than the national average in the 2016 election, and the university had the highest student voting rate among nearly 300 institutions across the country participating in the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. (Photo by August Jennewein)

The right to vote is considered fundamental in the United States, and people have worked for generations to ensure it is protected, promoted and practiced.

The University of Missouri–St. Louis is encouraging all eligible students, faculty and staff members to fulfill their civic responsibility by casting a ballot in the Nov. 3 election.

An impressive 67.4 percent of eligible UMSL students voted in November 2016, according to data gathered as part of the National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement conducted by researchers at Tufts University. That was the highest level of voter participation among nearly 300 institutions across the country taking part in the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge and was 17 percent higher than the national average among students when controlled for factors such as the age of the school’s student population.

Voting allows people to help shape the future of the region, the state and the country and can impact education, health care and a host of other issues that touch people’s lives each day. To further encourage voting, UMSL employees may be eligible for time off with pay to engage in voting.

Actor Jim O’Heir, best known for his role as Jerry Gergich on the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation, has a message encouraging students to vote.

For more information about voting and voting resources, visit https://www.umsl.edu/collaborations/citizenship-in-action/vote.html.