CAPE (Civic Activism, Participation, and Engagement)
We are pleased to announce that as of this Fall 2023 semester, Professor Sharon Bloyd-Peshkin is the LAS Faculty Fellow for Civic Engagement. In this role, Sharon is continuing her work leading Columbia Votes, which has raised the voting rate at our college from 56% to 72% since its inception. Sharon and her voter registration geniuses are continuing to visit to all sections of Big Chicago, staff voter registration tables at the Student Center and the University Center, partner with the Columbia College Library for National Voter Registration Day and other civic holidays, as well as offer ongoing support for our students to help them learn about candidates and issues and to vote early, vote by mail, or vote in person. She also continues to collaborate with national college voting organizations, among whom Columbia College Chicago is regarded as a leader.
In addition, Sharon will partner with Student Affairs on a newly formed project called CAPE (Civic Activism, Participation, and Engagement). CAPE is part of the college’s Strategic Plan and will be housed in the LAS Dean’s Office. It provides opportunities for all campus members to play a positive role in advocating for and enacting positive social change. Through CAPE, students will be able to earn badges on their co-curricular transcripts and be recognized during commencement for civic activities, including participating in electoral politics, taking courses with civically engaged content, engaging in art activism, and joining community organizations that focus on increasing civic knowledge and/or action.
Sharon has already launched a new online portal for CAPE, and I encourage all members of the Columbia College community to join columbiavotes.motivote.us, where you can learn about the expanded civic engagement initiatives and earn Columbia Votes swag. You can also access it through this QR code: 
Sharon welcomes invitations for her voter registration geniuses to visit classes and partner on events campuswide. You can reach her at speshkin@colum.edu or the whole team at vote@colum.edu.
