Secretary of State Alison Grimes held a roundtable discussion in the Curris Center theatre, over Kentucky’s civic health and how to improve people’s interest and activity in their community.
The Civic Health Initiative is a statewide series of discussions held at multiple universities in the state to improve the desire and involvement in politics, nonprofit organizations and public life. Murray State is the fifth of 15 total schools to have the initiative meeting.
Participants of the discussion include President Randy Dunn, former first District State Sen. Ken Winters, as well as many other academic faculty and government officials.
These state wide meetings are being held due to the data gathered from Kentucky’s first Civic Health Index, which revealed poor results with registered voters actually voting as well as citizen commitment to volunteer work. Kentucky’s voter registration and voter turnout varied in the 2011 index, the registered percentage at 66.9 percent and the actually turnout at 46.8 percent.
The reason for this decline in citizen commitment is not only due to the lack of desire, but due to funding for nonprofit projects and organizations drying up. Certain programs like the Senior Volunteer Program, where senior students are placed with sheriff officers or in mentor programs, as well as the Community Service Grant, which helps pay for housing repairs and utilities for families with low income, have been heavily affected by the lack of state and federal government funding.
“Funding is slowing up to non existence,” Pennyvile Family and Children Director, Joe Farless, said.
To combat the lack of interest as well as help with the funding issues for projects like these, many steps have already been taken to increase interest in both the community and education. Organizations like United Way currently run the project Get Connected, allowing students and university faculty to find projects they are interested and contact the nonprofit groups by using an open space called a playground.
This space is where individuals and organizations can contact one another, post events, and send out word of the current volunteer work available.
Another idea presented was to have retirees of these organizations to come into classrooms and share their history of working with the community. This was suggested so to help raise awareness within classrooms and grow interest in projects related to the student’s academic interests.
“Nothing good happens unless people are interested,” Winters said. “Inspiration is needed.”
It was also discussed when students participate in these community issues, they learn more about the needs of their cities, as well as which government official has interest in which problems.
Bonnie Higginson, vice president of Academic Affairs, said the kinds of projects being used and the involvement necessary can help improve the state of Kentucky as a whole and even benefit the single person in ways that many are unaware of.
“The students do not realize the benefits that these programs can offer for them and the same can be said for all citizens of Kentucky,” Higginson said.
Story by Joshua Hitz, Contributing writer.