UConn School of Social Work prepares next generation of election workers. The UConn Hartford NextGen Elections Program will prepare up to 10 UConn students to serve as poll workers and election moderators during Connecticut's 2026 elections As elections grow more technologically complex and the nation's election workforce grows older, a new program spearheaded by the UConn School of Social Work's Nancy A. Humphreys Institute for Political Social Work is giving students an opportunity to learn how elections are administered - and to play a direct role in the process. Nearly 60% of poll workers in the 2024 general election were age 61 or older, according to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. And only 4.5% were between the ages of 18 and 25. The EAC also reported that 47.9% of jurisdictions faced significant challenges recruiting and retaining poll workers in 2024. "It's important to get younger people interested and involved in the political process, and becoming a poll worker embeds them in elections in their own communities," says Shannon Lane, director of the Humphreys Institute and professor-in-residence. It's important to get younger people interested and involved in the political process, and becoming a poll worker embeds them in elections in their own communities. - Shannon Lane, director of the Nancy A. Humphreys Institute for Political Social Work and professor-in-residence The UConn Hartford NextGen Elections Program, funded through a grant from Campus Compact, will prepare up to 10 UConn students, including social work students, to serve as poll workers and election moderators during Connecticut's 2026 elections. Students will complete approximately 10 hours of training through a combination of asynchronous and in-person sessions, including training with the Connecticut Secretary of the State. Participants will become certified Election Moderators for the State of Connecticut. Following training, students will be connected with local election officials and assigned to polling locations, where they will work for at least two days during the 2026 election period. Connecticut's 2026 general election early voting period is Oct. 19 through Nov. 1, with Election Day on Nov. 3. "The program is a win-win," Lane says. "It provides students with hands-on experience in election administration while helping Connecticut communities recruit and train the next generation of election workers." For the Humphreys Institute, the program is an extension of its broader mission of connecting social workers and students with opportunities for civic engagement. Through training and hands-on experience at polling locations, students will have the opportunity to connect what they have learned about elections with the day-to-day realities of administering them. Students will learn about the many people and processes required to conduct an election, from preparing a polling place and assisting voters to following procedures for ballots and voting equipment. "Being a poll worker is a very tangible form of civic engagement," Lane says. "You are directly helping your community conduct an election." The program also will expose students to potential careers in election administration and build relationships between students and local election offices. Organizers hope the 2026 program will serve as a first step toward a broader UConn initiative connecting students with election administration opportunities throughout Connecticut. Participants will receive a $125 program stipend, up to $100 for transportation, food at in-person program events, and compensation for their election work at the rate established by their assigned election office. Students must be at least 18 years old, registered to vote in Connecticut, and meet Connecticut's poll-worker eligibility requirements. They must also be available for program events on Oct. 3 and Nov. 7 and for at least two days of election work during early voting and/or Election Day. Questions about the program can be directed to [email protected].

New resource for campus democracy practitioners: HEDEX launch event - July 29th, 2026. Campus Compact and the American Association of Colleges and Universities are launching the Higher Education Democracy Exchange (HEDEX), a new online platform designed to connect democracy-focused work happening across colleges and universities, at a live event on July 29, 2026. Developed in partnership with More Perfect and the University of Virginia's Karsh Institute of Democracy, HEDEX aims to give faculty, students, administrators, and community partners shared infrastructure for connecting efforts that too often remain isolated within individual institutions. The launch event will include a platform walkthrough, remarks from HEDEX's founders, and input from practitioners in the field on how the platform will evolve. Faculty, administrators, and civically engaged practitioners whose work touches democratic engagement on campus are encouraged to attend and help shape the platform going forward. HEDEX's mission to strengthen cross-institutional collaboration around civic and democratic engagement aligns closely with NCDD's own work supporting the broader dialogue and deliberation field. Higher education has long played a role in preparing students for democratic life, yet the people doing that work, faculty, administrators, students, and community partners, have often lacked a shared space to connect across institutions. The Higher Education Democracy Exchange (HEDEX) is designed to close that gap. Built by Campus Compact and the American Association of Colleges and Universities, in partnership with More Perfect and the University of Virginia's Karsh Institute of Democracy, HEDEX launches publicly on July 29, 2026, with a live event introducing the platform and outlining how practitioners can become part of it. The platform was developed with direct input from field leadership, positioning it as infrastructure shaped by the people who will actually use it rather than a top-down initiative. HEDEX's core purpose is connective: it is intended to help practitioners share best practices, access resources, and build collaborations across institutions, disciplines, and regions, rather than leaving each campus to develop its democratic engagement work in isolation. The July 29 launch event will feature remarks from HEDEX's founders, a live walkthrough of the platform itself, and perspectives from practitioners already active in the field, alongside information on how attendees can help shape the platform's future direction. The event is structured as an informational session, with attendees able to submit questions through Zoom's Q&A feature, making it accessible to those who simply want to understand what HEDEX offers before deciding how to engage further. For NCDD's network, HEDEX represents a parallel effort worth watching closely: another attempt to build durable, cross-institutional infrastructure for democratic engagement work, this time centered specifically on higher education. Faculty, administrators, civically engaged practitioners, partners, and funders whose work touches democratic engagement on campus in any form are encouraged to attend. The event takes place Wednesday, July 29, 2026, from 1:30 to 2:00 PM ET. Readers can register at https://events.compact.org/hedex-launch/register.