PARTNERSHIP WITH USHER’S NEW LOOK FOUNDATION

The Lowery Institute is committed to fostering Civic Engagement & participation and to promoting political awareness among young people.  To that end, in the summer of ’08 we partnered with multi-faceted philanthropist, entertainer and recording artist Usher Raymond, IV and his “New Look Foundation” Summer Camp.

The Camp—for youth aged 12-20—ran for two weeks in July in Atlanta , on the campus of Georgia Tech.  Because of the extraordinary interest generated by the National Elections, the Camp included a component on Civic Participation.

We helped to develop a curriculum which exposed the students to a broad, general overview of the national political process, and to the functions and role of the three branches of the Federal Government.  We emphasized the importance of registering, voting and of being knowledgeable, aware citizens.

The Institute recruited five metro Atlanta Church and Youth Organizations to participate in the Camp.  To put the Civic Engagement lessons learned in the classroom into practice—the campers hit the streets to conduct a major Voter Registration Campaign

These young people were responsible for adding more than 800 new voters to the ranks of registered voters.

THE NOVEMBER ELECTIONS

In November we joined forces with non-partisan entities like the NAACP, representatives of organized labor, Churches, fraternities and sororities, SCLC W.O.M.E.N.  Women’s Action for New Directions, and a new partner “The Voter Drive”, to operate a grass roots Free Ride to the Polls: Get Out the Vote operation.

We served Atlanta and a surrounding seven county metropolitan area to provide, in addition to our standard telephone dispatched rides—a new element of computer generated, assigned and scheduled rides to vote.  We employed private automobiles, passenger vans and lift vans for elderly or disabled voters.

We provided these services for the Presidential Election, The Georgia General Election and the subsequent Georgia Run-off.

We delivered more than 600 voters to the polls during the early voting period and another 100-250 during the General Election and Run Off.