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High school students serve as judges
Teens learn about polls while working during election
Herald Staff Writer
Video by Josh Stephenson
Click image to enlarge
Photo by YODIT GIDEY/Herald
Durango High School students Megan Blythe, left, and Lyda Phillips help a voter at the La Plata County Courthouse on Tuesday. High school students from Durango and Bayfield served as student election judges for Tuesday's general election.
More than 50 students from Durango High School and Bayfield High School were student election judges in precincts throughout the county.
Seventeen-year-old Rachel Talley, a DHS senior, spent the entire day at Precinct 11 greeting voters, checking them in and explaining the ballot.
"It was really cool to actually be a part of it because it was such a big election and nice to be able to do something since I can't vote," Talley said.
Students were paid $100 to work a 14-hour shift, and they did a little bit of everything throughout the day.
Durango High senior Zach Bennett, 18, worked in Precinct 14 taking voters' license plate numbers and having them sign a card promising to not vote anywhere else. After the day was over, he also helped bring the election equipment back to the courthouse.
Other students helped with voting machines, helped people fill out paperwork for provisional ballots and any other work an election judge might be asked to do.
"They didn't run machines on their own, but they were judges and treated just like any other judge," said Donna Elder, a La Plata County elections administrator.
Elder worked with social studies teacher Rob Javier from DHS to organize the students. Derrik Martin from Bayfield High School helped coordinate, as well.
"Since I was considering being an election judge myself, I thought, why don't I get students involved?" Javier said.
Many students who signed up had never had Javier for a class.
"I heard about it from my history teacher and wanted to see what it's all about," Bennett said.
Elder trained about 30 students in Javier's classroom, the same training given other election judges.
Students had to be at least 16 years old, a junior or senior and in good standing. They also had to arrange the day's absence and make sure it wouldn't affect their school work in DHS' final week of the first semester.
"It wasn't bad missing school that day," Bennett said. "The school was politically charged the next day, and I can only imagine what it would have been like the day of the election."
Bennett is registered to vote, and he voted early at the Courthouse, which is recommended to all election judges to avoid complications.
Bennett said he also got extra credit for the day's work.
Javier worked at Precinct 30 at Fort Lewis College with two students. As the 14-hour shift neared its end, the students were tired but giddy and excited.
"Election judges are a graying population, and it's great to get the young kids turned on to this and involved with the election," Javier said.
Elder received positive feedback from voters, and she thought it was important to have the students there.
"Hey, if we can snag them now, this is our future, and we need to get them involved and interested," she said.
Bennett seems hooked.
"I'll absolutely do it again. It was really fun and a way to have some insight on the process and see what people's attitudes are while they're voting," Bennett said.
kwarren@durangoherald.com
Kathrine Warren is an intern at The Durango Herald.
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