Centre College in Danville, Ky., is making history (again!) as the host of the only 2012 vice presidential debate between Joe Biden and Paul Ryan, an event the campus hosted in 2000 between Dick Cheney and Joe Lieberman. This year, Centre is using technology and innovative social media strategies to give high school and post-secondary students from Kentucky and around the world a chance to experience the debate.
The “Our Voice. Our Future.” event is a live, interactive webinar that gives teachers and students a front row seat to debate day activities and a forum to give reactions and discuss the general election. “Our Voice. Our Future.” will be broadcast live online in classrooms and on campuses across the country.
The event is made possible by the Global Center for Connected Campuses (GC3), a partnership between Centre College, Connected Nation and 10/20 Digital, which explores innovative and practical ways to use technology in the liberal arts college setting. “Our Voice. Our Future.” will be its first event, giving students access to powerful political thought leaders and a direct channel for communication among peers about the general election via online technology.
Former Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson (currently
Director of the Institute of Politics at
Harvard University) will serve as a moderator. “We all know how important
the 2012 elections are to our nation’s future, especially to students and millennials
who will become tomorrow’s leaders,” said Trey Grayson, director of Harvard’s
Institute of Politics. “The ‘Our Voice Our Future’ project will help encourage
students from across the country to engage in the political process this fall,
and I am excited this effort will be initiated from my native
state.”
Kentucky’s current Secretary of State, Alison Lundergan Grimes and Kentucky Educational Television’s Renee Shaw will also moderate the event. “Kentucky is at its best when everyone is engaged,” says Grimes, “and having the vice presidential debate in Kentucky creates a unique opportunity to involve our young people in the election. The ‘Our Voice. Our Future.’ event capitalizes on that opportunity by using technology to bring the democratic process straight into the classroom.”
The 2012 debate will engage K-12 and post-secondary students from Kentucky and other states in technology-enabled debate focused activities. GC3 plans a student-populated round table discussion on the afternoon before the debate takes place, including students drawn from high schools, colleges and universities participating live and online. GC3 and its partners have also provided a wealth of free teaching resources online in advance of the debates.
How can you join the conversation? Register now at www.2012vpdebate.com. Participants are encouraged to submit questions by Oct. 5 to debate@connectednation.org, and follow @ConnectedNation, @CentreC and #CentreVPDebate on Twitter.
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