Easton\u2019s Brody Orosky recently marked one milestone after another. Homecoming court, high school graduation, and now stepping into the voting process.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just registered last week,\u201d Orosky said.<\/p>\n
When asked why, he pointed partly to his grandfather\u2019s influence.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s also something I wanted to do because it matters,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
But across Pennsylvania, voices like Orosky\u2019s are in short supply. The nonpartisan nonprofit The Civics Center<\/a> recently studied voter registration numbers in 30 states. At 22%, Pennsylvania ranked last in registering 18-year-olds to vote.<\/p>\n Laura Brill, founder and CEO of The Civics Center, said the low number is not a reflection of young people lacking interest but…<\/p>\n \u201cWe have a systems challenge, a communication challenge, an education challenge, and it\u2019s not the problem inherent in young people,\u201d Brill said.<\/p>\n Brill said that unlike some other states, Pennsylvania teens cannot preregister before they turn 18. She also cited underperforming civic education as part of the challenge.<\/p>\n Angelique Hinton, executive director of PA Youth Vote, said the gap between wealthier and under-resourced school districts leaves many students without the same path to voting.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we can get to them and we can educate them, we can get them to register and participate,\u201d Hinton said.<\/p>\n In Allentown, one school has already shown what that kind of outreach can look like.<\/p>\n In 2020, we reported on an annual senior voter registration drive<\/a> at what was then Building 21 and is now Bridgeview Academy. Social studies teacher Shannon Salter described voting as \u201cintensely personal for students in Allentown.\u201d<\/p>\n