September 19, 2025

by Lauren Ferguson

Just two months before New Jersey elects its next governor, Ramapo College of New Jersey celebrated both National Voter Registration Day and Constitution Day with reenactments of speeches from Benjamin Franklin and Alexander Hamilton, a drive to register Roadrunners to vote, and some friendly statewide competition with other colleges.

“This is really kicking off the Fall semester, getting students registered to vote, and starting the conversation about the upcoming General Election and how they can get engaged,” said Political Science major Sarah Glisson ‘27, of Cinnaminson, NJ.

Glisson, a public policy minor, was previously honored for going above and beyond to advance nonpartisan student voter registration, education and turnout efforts when she was named to the 2025 ALL IN Student Voting Honor Roll by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge.

This week, she was tabling with other civic-minded Roadrunners in front of the historic Havemeyer Arch on Ramapo’s welcoming Mahwah campus, and helping fellow students to register to vote.

“I always start by asking students if they are registered to vote. If they say they’re not, I ask them if they want to register to vote and encourage them to,” Glisson explained. Glisson said registering to vote for students is as simple as scanning a QR code with their phones, then filling out the required information.

On the tables, students were offered the QR code, as well as paper registration forms, and  pledges to sign to commit to voting.

The pledges were for the “NJ Ballot Bowl,” a statewide non-partisan voter registration and engagement competition led by and for students at New Jersey colleges. The competition is a joint effort between the New Jersey Department of State’s Jersey Civic Engage initiative and the ALL In Campus Democracy Challenge to encourage students to register and cast their votes.

Jennifer Lopez ’27 handed out stickers to passersby.

As part of her volunteering efforts for the Zeta Phi Beta sorority, Social Work major Jennifer Lopez ‘27, of New Brunswick, NJ, was handing out stickers to passersby and encouraging them to visit the tables and take the pledge.

“I think it’s important for people to register to vote because it’s a way to express what you want to change and it gives you a voice. You get to choose who represents you and how they can make the country better,” said Lopez, a public policy minor.

During the General Election this November, New Jersey voters will elect a new governor, members of the New Jersey Assembly, as well as municipal and county officials throughout the state.

Dylan Heffernan, Ramapo’s assistant director of civic engagement, believes registering students to vote is part of “getting students to start exercising that civic muscle” and is a stepping stone to being more educated and involved in their communities.

The college’s Civic and Community Engagement Center (CCEC), which organized the drive, also hosts service opportunities, which help students get out into the community, and learn about issues that will likely inform their individual votes, he explained.

Leading up to Election Day, CCEC will be hosting more events for students to learn about the election process and candidates, such as a debate watch party.

Ramapo has earned accolades for student engagement. The college has earned the Voter Friendly Campus Designation and has been consistently recognized by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge for its excellence in student voter engagement.

Jackie Reed ’26 dressed as Alexander Hamilton to celebrate Constitution Day.

For more information on voting and political engagement at Ramapo, visit the CCEC webpage.