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Nervous about starting at Michigan State? Worried about your class schedule, living away from home, or where to even start? The Spartan Orientation Station (SOS) is a podcast hosted by New Student Orientation staff and was created by students for students. This podcast will launch twice a week throughout the summer, and each episode will feature a unique interview with campus departments discussing their services, common misconceptions, and fun Spartan engagement opportunities. When you need help at Michigan State, it is okay to signal SOS! Don’t worry – MSU is there for you.
Narrator 0:08
You’re listening to the Spartan Orientation Station on Impact 89 FM. The podcasts by students, for students. Now, this week’s episode.
Eva 0:18
Welcome back to the Spartan Orientation Station. Today’s featured campus partner is MSUVote, a non-partisan campus committee whose mission is to increase the number of registered student voters, to inform and educate students on candidates and issues, and to bolster student participation on Election Day. Through their education, participation, and voter registration initiatives, MSUVote helps empower students to become democratically engaged in their hometowns or in East Lansing. MSU was recognized by ALL IN in 2022 for significant efforts to get students engaged with the voting process. Whether you’re in-state or out of state, MSUVote is there to help you navigate the ballot.
Ali 0:58
My name is Ali Cramer. I’m one of your hosts today. I’m a recent graduate with degree—degree in neuroscience, and I am joined by my cohost here, Eva.
Eva 1:08
Hi guys, I’m Eva. I’m a rising senior studying international relations.
Ali 1:13
And today we are joined by Renee Brown, the director of the Center for Community Engaged Learning, Sue Webster, the director of the Office of Student and Community Relations, and Erin Kramer, the democratic engagement coordinator. Thank you all for being here.
Sue 1:28
Thanks for having us.
Eva 1:30
Okay, could you guys just begin by introducing yourselves a little bit more than we did, and explain your roles at MSU?
Renee 1:37
Sure! Hi, my name’s Renee Brown, and I’m the director of the Center for Community Engaged Learning, and that is an office on campus that really focuses on preparing students for lifelong civic and social responsibility, and as part of that, I codirect the MSUVote campus initiative with my colleague Sue Webster.
Sue 1:56
Yes, and we have so much fun, don’t we, Renee?
Renee 1:59
We do.
Sue 2:00
So, I’m Suchitra, or Sue Webster, and I’m the director of community and student relations at Michigan State University, and the work that comes out of my office is really anything that’s off campus-related, so it has a lot to do with off campus living and exploration, working with public safety and municipalities, and helping students become acclimated to the area and region, so those are big picture things, and also work with MSU college advising corps, and, as Renee said, one of the best things we do is work on MSUVote together.
Erin 2:35
And I’m Erin Kramer. I’m the democratic engagement coordinator, so I work alongside Sue and Renee on the MSUVote initiative, on empowering and educating MSU students on getting democratically engaged, learning how to register to vote and then get educated and actually do the voting part but also preparing them by equipping them with various civic skills so they can go into their communities and be good neighbors and good citizens to their community.
Ali 3:08
Perfect. Well, thank you so much for joining us today. It definitely seems like you all cover a large swath of the campus experience, kind of, outside the classroom. So, I was wondering if we could kind of start getting into MSUVote. Could you talk a little bit about what MSUVote is and what resources it provides for students?
Renee 3:29
Sure. So, MSUVote is a campus and community initiative. We’ve been around for twenty-two years which is a pretty long time, actually, and we all work together to make sure that voting and voter education and voting resources are available to MSU students whether they vote here locally or they vote in their home communities, and we work really closely with student organizations, student government, ASMSU, the Council on Graduate Students, and then also with community partners, and so I’ll turn this to you, Sue to talk a little bit about our relationship with the community folks.
Sue 4:09
Definitely. I think we’re really fortunate here because we have a pretty strong relationship with our clerks, and that would be certainly clerks in the city of East Lansing, Lansing, Meridian Township, et cetera, and also our county Clerk, who—they're all very committed to making sure that students have access and the ability to make it as simple as possible to participate in elections. There are a lot of community partners, as Renee was mentioning, as well, such as the League of Women Voters, would be a group, other civic organizations that are interested, and certainly we do have issues-based folks and campaigns that always like to make sure that, you know, people are aware of all of the issues and we try to provide links and all of that information on our website: msuvote.msu.edu.
Renee 5:00
And when we do things here, we do them big, right? So, here at MSU, we have the distinction of the most improved student voting campus, and we were given that designation by the Michigan Secretary of State and the Big Ten Voting Network. We’re also a voter friendly campus and that’s a special designation that we’ve held here at MSU since it became available, and I do think those are important things to know.
Sue 5:26
Yep. I would just also add that we’re very fortunate that we have five precincts on campus, and not many colleges or universities can say that, and a lot of that is—we can attribute that to our relationship with those off campus partners and wanting to ensure that our students have the ability to participate in elections, so we do that. We also have had, especially in recent years, satellite offices, so if people need to have information answered, they need help with registration, they can find spots on campus and again at City Hall, literally across the street, in East Lansing.
Eva 6:02
Okay, so, obviously you guys bring a lot of resources to help students vote and provide them with so much assistance, but can you just explain why it is important for students here at MSU to get out and vote?
Sue 6:17
Yeah. It’s, it’s critical. It’s important to—I mean, we can look at it from a lot of angles, and certainly, one of the things that’s most important is that we are all participating in a democracy and so the best way that you can do that, and make sure that your voice is heard and that the issues that you care about, you know, are, are front and center, is to participate in the democratic process for us which is voting. So, there are a lot of other ways, and I think, Erin, a little bit later, is gonna talk about some of the things she does with faculty and other students in classrooms but, you know, finding something that you’re passionate about and participating consistently without fail. So it doesn’t matter if we’re talking about this fall’s city council elections or, you know, last year we had a general election, presidential cycle and then we’re gearing—I'm sorry, a midterm election—and we are gearing up for the presidential election coming up next year, so it doesn’t matter how big or how small; it’s making sure that you are, sort of, exercising that voting muscle.
Ali 7:25
And then I know you were speaking about local elections. Kind of on the same topic of local elections, if students are coming here either from within the state or from a different state, can they register to vote in the greater MSU community, and then could you talk, if so, a little bit about how that process works?
Erin 7:45
Yes! Absolutely. If you’re an out of state student, or maybe an in-state student, whose hometown is in Traverse City or Grand Ledge, you can absolutely register at your on campus MSU community address. So, if you are an in-state student, you can actually do that process online, at the Secretary of State’s website. That’s only if you have a Michigan drivers’ license or a Michigan personal ID, and you have to know your Social Security Number, if you’re going to do that. So, you will just need to have proof of residency on election day, when you show up to the polls at that precinct so that can be a utility bill, it can be your student registration, make sure you update your current address at your student.msu.edu as that will be a viable proof of residency. And also, I’ll just let students know that if you plan to do an online registration, even if you’re registering for your hometown in Michigan, be sure to do it by the deadline which typically tends to be about fourteen to fifteen days before the election, pay attention on the Secretary of State’s website and our website because we’ll have information about that. If you are not a Michigan resident, you will, and you’re wanting to vote at your MSU address, you will need to head on over to your Clerk’s Office or a satellite Clerk’s Office, bring some proofs of residency, be sure to bring your ID, whether that’s a state ID or your drivers’ license, with you. And then bring, as I mentioned a proof of residency to register at Michigan, in Michigan. It will not change your, like, state status with your home state, so if you’re from Indiana or Oklahoma, you can still vote in Michigan and you won’t have to, like, update all your information. So, you just have to do that in person.
Eva 9:52
Okay, great. So, I know I voted this fall on campus, and I voted in Brody Hall, but how can other students find out where they’re supposed to vote?
Erin 10:03
Yes. So, if you are registered in Michigan, whether you’re an in-state student or out of state student, you can go to the Secretary of State’s website, and it will have a nice little punch in where you can put your name, your address, and it will pop out where you’re supposed to vote. You can also always request an absentee ballot, if maybe you have transportation issues to getting to the precinct that you are designated to vote at so that’s always an option as well. Michigan is a no-reason absentee voting state, so.
Ali 10:39
Perfect. And then, I’m from Bowling Green, Ohio, personally, so out of state but not too far out of state, and so if I know I’m registered there can I still change my registration, then, to vote while I’m here at school in kind of the MSU area and then maybe say I move back to Ohio post-graduation everything will work out fine?
Erin 11:05
Yes! So, when you register in Michigan, you’ll, depending on the state, I know Indiana sends you a slip of paper that you sign, agreeing that you will not be voting in Indiana, otherwise your vote will be essentially nullified, if you vote twice, so it’s only the community you reregister in that the vote will count, so it’s super easy, and it really just depends on what your state policy is on if you have to sign something or go through that process but it’s very easy.
Sue 11:37
And you can find links to that, right, Erin, on our website?
Erin 11:41
Yes. You absolutely can.
Eva 11:43
Okay, so can students register the same day as Election Day in the greater MSU community, and are those requirements of what they need to bring the same, different?
Erin 11:56
Yeah. So, in the greater MSU community, you can register, and you can register in Michigan, on the same day as Election Day. I highly encourage everybody to register way in advance and take advantage of early voting to avoid registration lines on Election Day so you’re getting ahead and you’re planning ahead. So, you can vote in person and register in person on Election Day, you just need to bring those proofs of residency. If you don’t have a drivers’ license or ID, you’ll just have to sign an affidavit, so if you don’t have that with you here on campus, just be sure to be aware of that.
Renee 12:42
Yep, and please also know, too, that we work really closely with the East Lansing Clerk’s Office and always try to make sure that there are satellite Clerk’s Offices on campus for early voting well in advance, so there’s really plenty of opportunity to vote in advance of Election Day, and, as Erin says, stay out of those long lines.
Sue 13:04
Yep. Could I just throw in one more thing? I was just thinking about the fact that when you do vote absentee, or you can get your hands on that ballot in advance, when you’re maybe unsure about, you know, judges, or you’re going down that ballot and you’re not really clear on an issue, it gives you the opportunity to sit in your own space and take your time and do some research in advance as opposed to feeling the crunch and pressure when you’re voting at the last minute, so since we have that option here in Michigan, I always encourage people to try and do that.
Renee 13:40
That’s what I do, Sue.
Sue 13:42
Yep.
Renee 13:42
I love to do it that way because I have to take the time. We also will, like, offer you, we can get you a sample ballot ahead of time, too.
Sue 13:48
Yep. Yep. Exactly.
Ali 13:50
I always use sample ballots. That’s something I learned at Buckeye Girls State back in the day. Take those notes into the ballot box, some people give you side eyes but at least you know you’re in form going into it.
Sue 14:01
Exactly.
Eva 14:03
Okay, so what if a student doesn’t have a drivers’ license or a state ID, are they still able to vote, or no?
Erin 14:14
Yes. As I said, you will just have to sign an affidavit if you do not have your drivers’ license or a picture ID, and if you don’t have a drivers’ license, you may have a state ID, those are available through Secretary of State offices all over the country, so that’s always an option as well.
Ali 14:37
And I think, going back to my earlier point about being out of state, being so close, I try to stay up with local politics. I prefer to vote in my hometown, still. Could you talk a little bit about, maybe, students who haven’t been civically engaged and come to college and then wanna register in their hometown and how your initiative supports this?
Erin 14:59
Yes. So, our initiative has on our website guidelines and links for each different state. Students can also reach out and email me, my email is on the website, and ask specific questions and I’m happy to talk them through and walk them through registering in their home state and how to find that information and for students who are planning to vote in their home state and city, I highly encourage them to start looking at that information early. Some states have faster deadlines than Michigan. Sometimes if you’re requesting an absentee ballot, that can take some time for it to arrive to you in Michigan, and some folks have, or some states have different deadlines for requesting an absentee ballot. Unless you plan to travel home on Election Day, my assumption is that you would need to secure that.
Sue 15:56
I just want to throw in there, too, I think as students are making this decision, and they should make that decision for themselves, about where they’re going to opt to actually vote, it’s important, you know, there are multiple ways of thinking about it, two schools of thought: one which often says the important thing is that people participate and they vote, so the location shouldn’t matter; and for others, there’s a belief that you are sort of a citizen of this community now, in most cases, at least, nine months a year and a lot of the things that go on, for example, in local elections here, would have the most bearing on you as a student, and therefore, this is the place where you should be registered and voting and because, especially in Michigan, it is not difficult to make those changes if you, you know, then went home or elsewhere, even upon graduation, so it’s just important for students to think about, you know, all of those pieces. I’ve talked to students before who were, like, “I was really involved in my local community. I, you know, collected signatures for a candidate. I wanna vote there and see this through.” And there are others who are, like, “Well, now I’m here. I’m a Spartan. I live in East Lansing.” So, I just, I think there’s some thinking that should occur around that.
Eva 17:16
Okay, so I know we touched on this a little bit earlier, but could you guys just go a little more in depth about what an absentee ballot is and where it’s available?
Erin 17:29
Yeah! An absentee ballot is your ballot to cast for Election Day, and you just receive it in advance, typically. You can request it, and it’ll be sent to whatever address you’re at, so that could be your residence hall address, maybe you’re living off campus, to that address and then you will fill it out, and, as Sue mentioned, you can look up online to really get to know the issues. I personally use vote411.org. It’s a non-partisan guide to what’s on the ballot and where candidates stand on the issues and then also what proposals are on the ballot. It’s a super useful resource, so you can go through there and go through your ballot and then submit it. You could be wanting to, as we said, you know, look up kind of the information as you go through the ballot, or maybe you’re out of state in Michigan at school so you’re not able to go back to Ohio for, say, to vote. So, that’s a really useful tool for that, and it makes things convenient and really accessible for student voters and for all voters, honestly.
Renee 18:43
Yeah, and you can pick up, so you can watch our website for these dates, but you can pick up your absentee ballot at the East Lansing Clerk’s Office which is really conveniently located close to campus. You can also drop that ballot off at a drop box there, or we have one on campus by the MTA bus.
Sue 19:02
Yes. By the main bus, CATA.
Renee 19:04
Yeah. The CATA, sorry CATA.
Sue 19:07
Yeah, CATA bus route and it’s right by Shaw Hall so it’s pretty centrally located if you don’t wanna walk over.
[Note for clarity: Sue and Renee are talking about the CATA bus station on campus which is across the street from Shaw Hall and close to the center of campus.]
Renee 19:14
Yeah, and if you wanna mail it, that’s fine, too. Don’t freak out if you don’t have stamps. We’re going to have stamps available for students at the Center for Community Engaged Learning which is located at 101 Student Services Building and probably lots of other places too, but we know that one for sure.
Erin 19:32
We’ll update our website with other locations as well as we near Election Day.
Ali 19:37
Perfect. So, we’ve talked a lot about different resources, but how can students learn what’s on the ballot for an upcoming election?
Erin 19:47
Yeah, so, for example, we have a local election in East Lansing on November 7, as do many other communities. This election is sort of slower, I mean, smaller and more focused on municipalities, so we have city council seats up for election, and I really recommend vote411.org since that is the spot where all of the information on the ballot is, and you can even go through and check off to kind of create, like, a little sheet for yourself. You can even print it off and bring it to the polls, if you’re going that route and it’ll save who you’re planning on voting for, and you can sit there and compare the different candidates and the different ballot proposals as well, so that’s a really useful tool, and it’s also useful for the presidential primary that’s happening on February 27 and we will have nine days of early voting. February 27 does fall on Spring Break, so definitely plan ahead for voting for the presidential primary in Michigan.
Eva 21:03
Okay, so are there opportunities for students to get involved on campus with MSUVote, especially as a new student?
Erin 21:12
Yes. We have jobs, we have connections to fellowships that do democratic engagement work on campus with us as well, and we also have ample opportunities for students to volunteer. Students can also be a part of MSUVote, the initiative where we come together, and we sort of talk about what’s going on on campus in the voting realm and we have our new student caucus that we’ll be launching sometime this fall, so that’ll be a space where students can all gather of different ideologies and who have different passions about different issues, and they can come together and talk about voting and what civic and democratic engagement means to them. On our website, you can fill out a short form where you will receive emails about all these different opportunities to engage and we’ll directly reach out to students about, like, getting involved.
Ali 22:11
Perfect. Well, thank you so much for being here today. As always, we’re gonna end with our favorite question which is--what is your favorite part of being a Spartan and working with students here on campus?
Sue 22:24
I guess I’m going first. I’ve been a Spartan for a very long time and have been working all over the institution and was an undergrad here as well. This place is like no other. It’s so huge and yet it feels like everyone and everything is somehow connected to each other. You always find these amazing linkages so I—for me it’s just, it’s home, and it’s a great place. And so, your question was twofold, right? You wanted to know--
Ali 22:58
Yeah. Both what is your favorite part of being a Spartan, but also working with students here.
Sue 23:02
Working with students is amazing because it’s a fresh perspective. I almost want to say every day, but the reality is, I mean it’s, it’s having your finger on the pulse of everything all the time and having the ability to work with people who have so much energy and enthusiasm and sharing ideas, and it’s learning new things, and that’s just fun.
Erin 23:28
My favorite part of being a Spartan is, I think, the community and the people at MSU. For whatever reason, MSU just seems to attract a unique personality type that is so welcoming and fun and engaged, so that is what I would say is my favorite part of being a Spartan, and, similar to Sue, working with students, the energy that they bring into spaces where they are learning, but I am also learning from them, and we are also always learning together is definitely my favorite part. So, yeah. Renee?
Renee 24:10
And my favorite part of being a Spartan is really that my—I've really focused most of my life on building really strong communities, and this is probably the strongest community that I’ve ever been a part of. It’s a beautiful campus, but it’s filled with beautiful people who want to, like, work together and make change in the world, and that’s the type of student that we see in the Center for Community Engaged Learning, and I would also just say, similar to my colleagues, you know, the new ideas, the energy. Students are amazing, and they come here to grow and develop, but they’re helping our community to grow and develop too, so I love both our students and our community.
Ali 20:50
Well, thank you so much--
Sue 24:51
Before we leave, could we just tell you our tagline? And we could each say a part of it, so it’s basically: Go Green...
Erin 24:58
Go white!
Renee 24:59
Go vote!
Ali 25:01
I love that. Well, thank you so much for joining us today to learn a little bit about how to get democratically engaged in your local, your state, and your national governments, and tune in next time where we’ll be talking with the Associated Students of MSU. We’ll be discussing how to get involved with your student government right here on campus. Thank you!
Renee 25:24
Thank you.
Sue 25:25
Thank you.
Narrator 25:26
Thank you for listening to this episode of the Spartan Orientation Station on Impact 89 FM. Let us know what you think by connecting with us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram @msu_nso.