“Our institution is proud to receive this national recognition for our efforts. Our faculty, staff, administrators and students are committed to working together to reduce apathy, increase engagement and graduate civic-minded students prepared to solve the most pressing challenges facing our country and the world,” said Pam Curtis, director of the Office of Student Involvement.

UofL won a silver award last year. This is UofL’s first year for a gold award. Data reveals a 9.7% increase in UofL’s voting engagement since 2014.

Student participation in elections nationwide has increased from the 2014 midterm election to the recent midterm election. According to Tufts University’s National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement, voter turnout at more than 1,000 institutions participating in the study increased by 21 points from 19% to 40%.

“We are excited to honor University of Louisville with an ALL IN Challenge gold seal in recognition of their intentional efforts to increase democratic engagement and full voter participation,” said Jennifer Domagal-Goldman, executive director of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. “More institutions like UofL are changing the culture on campus by institutionalizing nonpartisan democratic engagement efforts that are resulting in the incredible student voter turnout rates that we’ve seen across the country.”

The is a nonpartisan, national initiative recognizing and supporting campuses as they work to increase nonpartisan democratic engagement and full student voter participation. The Challenge encourages higher education institutions to help students form the habits of active and informed citizenship, and make democratic participation a core value on their campus.

More than 560 campuses, enrolling more than 6.2 million students, have joined the Challenge since its launch in summer 2016.

The annual Day of Service has been an American tradition since 1994, running on the idea that the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday is a “day on, not a day off.” At UofL, the community service efforts are coordinated by the Engage Lead Serve Board.

Students this year volunteered at a variety of off-campus sites, from the Harbor House and Olmsted Parks Conservatory to La Casita and Kentucky Refugee Ministries. Students were also able to complete some projects on campus, including with UofL Composting. 

“It’s in honor of Dr. King’s vision of serving his community, making lives better, supporting people that need help, and that everyone has the capacity to give,” said Pam Curtis, director of the Office of Student Involvement. 

Check out the students’ efforts in their own words: 

As UofL’s Associate Director for Operations and Facility Services, it’s his job to serve students. But it’s also his passion, and he’s found additional, unique ways to reach out to students and help them be their best selves.

In 2015, he founded the , “the first group of its kind to ‘pump and strut’ across the campus of UofL,” he said.

Since then, the organization has become a visible part of campus life, participating in such signature campus events as the and . The organization is now planning a modeling clinic open to the public.

“Cultivating a presence within the greater Louisville community is very important,” he said.

Medley, who is from Chatham, Virginia, tells his BMFT students “confidence and beauty lies within,” a motto he models daily. He’s always the most dapper dressed in a room and addresses others with a cultivated charm. Everyone is “Mr.” and “Ms.” in his vernacular.

He graduated from Virginia Tech with a bachelor of psychology and a MA in education with a cognate in multiculturalism.

Medley stopped in to UofL News recently to tell us more about BMFT and his thoughts on student involvement and community service.

UofL News: What exactly is BMFT?

Medley: The organization presents the art form of collegiate modeling with its origins at historically black colleges and universities. The integration of traditional runway modeling within the framework of African American culture embodying music, footwork technique and dance sets the stage for an electrifying experience. BMFT is identified via the colors emerald green and old gold, the lion/lioness mascot and motto “Elevate Yourself.”

This organization has become an important part of my identity at the university and within the city. I am fortunate to have 40-plus students on this campus know without a doubt that Medley will challenge and support them to be their best self.

UofL News: What motivated you to start this group?  

Medley: I have been fortunate to have the opportunity of connecting my passion for the performing arts and fashion to my professional work and community outreach. As a toddler, I watched my mother play the piano and sing in the church choir. When I entered the second grade she became the elementary cheerleading coach. These early years became the framework by which I evolved into the person before you today. As a lover of the performing arts, I am a classical and jazz vocalist, play trombone, piano and drums. I also volunteer within the world of pageantry as a coach and mentor with the Miss America Organization, Miss USA and Miss Black USA Organization. Continuing with my support of the arts, I have advised a university gospel choir and an all-male Athletic Division I cheer/spirit squad. 

Upon my arrival to UofL, I personally felt a void with my connection to students of color. After speaking with several students, I realized that there were not many performing arts organization/styles outside of stepping within the NPHC organizations. I began to dialogue with Ms. Julie Onnembo and Tierney Bates in Student Affairs about the tools/skills to create and sustain a student organization. With their support, I was able to create the foundation for an entity like no other at the institution.

UofL News: What does this kind of student involvement mean to you?

Medley: My long-term involvement in community outreach has been integrated into my work environment and experience at each institution within my career. I am a believer that students should be engaged and connected to their institution in a manner whereby they are not only receiving, but also giving. Student organizations have the ability to be a major connector for students within their campus. They have the ability to give so much to a student’s collegiate experience and become part of the institution’s brand and identity.  I ask my student leaders consistently: how are they relevant within the space they live and breathe? What is their purpose?

Learn more about BMFT on ���Ի���.

“I loved the service aspect, that instead of relaxing over spring or Christmas break, 12 to 20 people go and dedicate their time to others,” she said.

Fast forward to this year and Holder has taken on a leadership role with the program. As student co-director, Holder helped plan and lead a spring break trip to Chicago for 14 students. They spent the week working and learning from three nonprofit organizations that serve victims of domestic violence.  

“Personally, I wanted to address domestic violence because it is a chronic issue no one is immune to,” she said.  

Holder, who is an early education major, said an objective in planning the trip was to expose students to domestic violence victims from different viewpoints.

“People often have an idea of a typical domestic violence victim and I wanted to broaden that vision for all of us,” she said.

They first visited KAN WIN, a nonprofit that empowers Asian American survivors of assault and sexual violence, and helped staff prepare for their Annual Benefit Gala.

Holder said they learned about how immigrants and refugees can be particularly vulnerable for fear that leaving their abuser might affect their legal status or lead to deportation.

“These issues are hard enough as it is, but some families face additional difficulties because of their backgrounds. Leaving can be such a challenge because there are obstacles from every direction,” she said.

They also worked at Sarah’s Inn with Hispanic American women and their families.

With a judge’s permission, they sat through several domestic violence court cases, where they learned some of the legal proceedings required to get away from an abuser.

At the end of each day, the students had reflection time and debriefed their experiences together.

“Everyone could tell something that struck them,” Holder said. “These trips encourage people to find what they’re passionate about and work on that in their own community.”

For example, a student on the trip noted how many homeless people they encountered in Chicago and is now thinking about doing service work around issues of homeless and mental health.

The group always does additional service work around their chosen social justice theme in Louisville Metro, as well. This year they visited , a treatment program for victims of human trafficking, where they repainted a room where participants study to earn their GEDs.

“The Alternative Service Break (ASB) program traveled to Baltimore for six days with a group of 15 passionate undergraduate and graduate students and one staff advisor for Spring Break 2017. They performed over 200 hours of service to the Baltimore community.

Half of the group worked with the Living Classrooms Foundation, where they did art projects and played games with children in an after-school program. Kat Gries, one of two undergraduate student leaders for this ASB, used her skills and background as a student in the College of ����ֱ�� to plan the lessons and activities. The experience was transformative for undergraduate student Krista Mills, who changed her major from nursing to education when she returned after her service at Living Classrooms helped her realize her true passion was for children.

The other group focused their service on working with three urban farms. In between weeding, planting 2,000 seeds and cutting vines and branches despite brisk winds and snow, UofL students took part in impactful conversations about food sovereignty and the consequences of labeling areas as food deserts.

The rewarding trip transformed the students, making them even more passionate about taking active roles in our community, our country and our world.

Aliyah Gant, an accounting major, said she ‘left this trip with a rejuvenated hope in humanity, new knowledge, new ideas for Louisville service and new connections to like-minded people on campus.’”

Alternative Service Break trips, organized by UofL Student Leadership and Service in the Office of Student Involvement, are designed to facilitate service learning as well as build awareness about community issues. Each trip focuses on a theme or social issue to challenge students to think critically about root causes and the student’s role within the community. Previous ASB trips have been to communities such as Asheville, North Carolina, Washington, D.C., and the Galapagos Islands.

The students are from a variety of different disciplines including education, nursing, criminal justice, biology, engineering, business and psychology.

Janet Cappiello contributed to this story, which has been updated since it was originally posted in March. 

About 3,800 students voted in this year’s general election, about 20 percent of the entire student body. Previously, voter turnout has totaled between 6 percent and 15 percent.

A separate runoff election was held for three of the four SGA executive positions. According to SGA’s constitution, at least 40 percent of votes must go to the winning candidate or a runoff election will be held. The runoff election also had a high voter turnout, with about 2,300 students participating.

SGA president Aaron Vance said this year’s high number of voters can be attributed to the high level of outreach from UofL’s SGA as well as a new voting system. Vance also said that the recent campus climate has encouraged students to become more engaged.

This election, SGA used a software system called Blue, which allowed the polls to go out via student email. Blue is the same system used for course evaluations at the university. In previous years, students had to log into ULink and click on several tabs before getting to the ballots.

“We worked very hard to make voting easier,” Vance said. “Sending it to student emails took the hassle out of how it was previously done.”

Results for the top four in SGA for the 2017-18 year are:

• Vishnu Tirumala, Student Body President
• Sarah Love, Student Body Executive Vice President
• Jonathon Fuller, Student Body Academic Vice President
• Chris Bird, Student Body Services Vice President

As the new president of SGA, Tirumala will also serve as the student representative on the board of trustees.