Best of CASE District II Award
 

Institution: Carnegie Mellon University

Title of entry: Constitution Day 2024: DIY Postcards for a Stronger Democracy

About this entry: Constitution Day is a federally recognized holiday that commemorates the ratification of the U.S. Constitution on September 17. All institutions that receive federal funding are required to honor Constitution Day with educational programming, including our institution Carnegie Mellon University (CMU).

When planning our 2025 Constitution Day event in CMU’s University Libraries, we considered the context of the upcoming General Election on November 5, 2024 as well as the primary intended audience of undergraduate and graduate students. Ultimately, our event goal was to provide an opportunity for participants to learn about relevant election information as well as take optional non-partisan action according to their interests.

We assembled a team of campus and community partners to take part in the event. This included sharing responsible voting practices in the age of AI, distributing educational voting materials, and registering new voters. These organizations included CMU Votes, the League of Women Voters, the Sustainability Initiative, and the Block Center for Technology and Society. We also provided an array of craft materials, such as blank postcards, stickers, and washi tape, for participants to create postcards with reminders to vote in the upcoming election. Finally, we offered refreshments and participants received swag, a pocket Constitution, and a coupon to the Libraries coffee shop.

The result was a record number of in-person, engaged event participants, with an overall turnout of over 50 people. Dozens of students took advantage of the opportunity to connect with their campus community and craft personalized postcards to then distribute to their broader campus community.