Students from 45 high schools throughout Los Angeles will participate in a new program designed to increase participation in the 2001 mayoral elections as well as understanding of new communication technologies. Launched in January by the USC Annenberg School for Communication, Los Angeles Student Voices, utilizes an innovative new curriculum that incorporates Internet-connected computers in the classroom.

Students participating in the program will gain increased political knowledge, civic identity and commitment through their research, discussions, and debate of the issues in the campaign. They will meet and interview candidates, participate in public forums and debates, write their own commentary pieces, produce video documentaries (which will be posted to the Student Voices web site, student-voices.org/losangles), and appear on local television and radio stations to discuss the campaign and city issues.

The program is designed to spark young people’s interest in politics and empower them to become informed and involved citizens, according to Thomas Hollihan, professor and associate dean for academic affairs at USC Annenberg. By increasing students’ awareness of the election, Los Angeles Student Voices also aims to boost voter turnout.

"We think parents will be more likely to tune into the mayoral race if they see their children learning about and discussing the election and attend functions where they see their children working on voter education projects, participating in candidate or issue debates, producing their own voter guides and interviewing the candidates," he said.

Los Angeles Student Voices is modeled after a similar successful project conducted in conjunction with the Philadelphia mayoral election in 1999. The project is part of the National Student Voices Project of the Annberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, with funding from the Annenberg Foundation and The Pew charitable Trusts. Over the next five years, the National Student Voices Project will support local civic education projects in 22 cities throughout the country.

In order to facilitate student involvement, two new computers, funded by the project will be installed and donated to each high school. Students will use the computers to access the project’s web site (student-voices.org/losangeles), research the issues and the candidates, as well as to share their opinions and analysis with their peers at other schools.

In the Philadelphia program, conducted by the University of Pennsylvania, the level of student interest in that city’s mayoral elections dramatically increased, according to Hollihan. "They were also successful in changing the nature of local media converge because of the students’ activities," he said. "We hope to make a similar impact in Los Angeles, where the press, especially broadcasters, have been somewhat inattentive to local elections."

For more information about Los Angeles Student Voices, contact Julie Silvers, project manager, at (213)821-5656.