On February 20, the state’s deadline for voter registration, the Noble Network of Charter Schools delivered 1,421 students’ new voter registration forms to the Cook County Board of Elections.

“Our students care about the issues in their community, the city and the state. They are passionate and driven about making change, not only in their city and state, but also locally in their community,” said Ellen Moiani, a senior organizer for Noble. “We felt it was important to simplify the voter registration experience by making the process convenient and removing any potential bureaucratic barriers.”

“The fact that Noble has students register to vote is a good thing because I did not know how to register and I’m not sure I would have done it on my own. I didn’t even know when I was supposed to vote and on what,” shared Muchin College Prep senior Anthony Zamora.

Among the 1,421 registration forms from eligible students, some Noble campuses had extremely high registration rates: Rowe-Clark Math & Science Academy had 80% of eligible students register, Muchin College Prep saw 82% register, and Noble Street College Prep had over 88% register to vote in 2018.

“Our goal at Noble is to prepare students with the scholarship, discipline, and honor to live exemplary lives,” said Emily Mason, principal of Muchin College Prep in the Loop. “Part of living an exemplary life is civic engagement and the opportunity to improve one’s community through the democratic process.”

Stephanie Jimenez, also a senior at Muchin College Prep, believes students should be politically informed and engaged, “It helps us to be open to more different points of view, and not just what we see on the internet. By getting involved in the democratic process, we are less ignorant about what happens in our country and around the world.”

Kaelen Starks, another senior at Muchin, appreciates the encouragement from Noble to be involved, “It is important for scholars to be informed about what is happening in the political landscape, especially what types of laws are governing us that impact our households.” Her classmate Nia Johnson added, “By getting involved, we learn about all the different ways we can engage with the process.”

Noble schools are not able to engage in any sort of political action or support any political candidates, and no portion of the voter registration process implied any sort of endorsement for or against any candidates or potential candidates. Noble schools simply made voter registration forms available and answered students’ questions through the registration process.

“After students register to vote, they then have a choice to cast their ballots. This gives them the ability to have a say in our democratic system and to vote for the change they want to see,” said Moiani. “Noble’s registration results are a tremendous start towards the goal of having all our eligible students become voters.”