Students express their voices through politics and campaigning 

With the midterm elections over and a presidential election on the way, politics don’t have to be an adult-only conversation. Students and newly registered voters can have their voices heard even before they can vote. Fresno Christian senior Caleb Trogdon explores this idea by participating in a student action team.

Sharing political views and persuading strangers to believe them isn’t easy, but as John Quincy Adams once said, “The duty is ours, but the results are God’s.” Our duty is to steward and protect the rights and values that our founding fathers left behind.

Because we are blessed as Americans with a nation built on responsibility, we must steward our country by exercising our rights to vote and be role models for our fellow countrymen.

There are many programs that provide the proper resources for students under 18 to be politically active and have their voices heard. The only thing required is motivation and commitment to hard work.  

Some of the programs that students can take part in include Generation Joshua, TeenPact Leadership, and Patriot Academy.  

Generation Joshua, a Christian organization, teaches teens about government and explains why they don’t have to wait until they turn 18 to influence politics.  Glenn Bertsch, Generation Joshua’s program administrator is more than happy to inform students of the opportunities they provide. However, he- like other leaders in charge of similar programs- can only make a difference when there are students willing to make an effort to positively change their country.

“Students are treated like they can’t make a difference until they are 18 and then they can vote,” Berstch shares. “Student action teams show teenagers that you have a voice and it matters, and it also educates them on practical ways how to make a difference. ”

Student action teams historically have impacted close races— according to Bertsch sometimes as much as two percentage points—  being the difference for some politicians between a win and a loss.

“Student Action Teams are where we deploy groups of students into some of the closest races in the country,” Bertsch says. “We pick candidates that are vetted by HSLDA Political Action Committee (PAC). These candidates are pro-life, pro-family, and pro-homeschooling candidates. We target close elections, we do door knocking and phone banking, days before an election.”

Personally, what I enjoy about being a part of a Student Action team is being able to make a difference and knowing that the work I do influences politics. For example, one time in North Carolina, I talked to a lady, and she voted for the first time in a presidential election afterward.

In my experience of campaigning, I saw a wide range of reactions from people we were talking to. I found out people are generally kinder when talking to them in person than over the phone. Sometimes on the phone, we’d get cussed out because they don’t really want to talk to us, but when we went door-to-door, most of them were more than willing to hear what we had to say.

Not only was the work rewarding, but the task itself was enjoyable because I got to do it with other students my age and make fun memories with new friends.

 Riley Moore, ‘26, accompanied us on one of the student action teams. He shares why he believes student action teams impact the political arena. 

“We are the next generation of politicians and voters, if the next generation isn’t getting involved now we will struggle to learn from others, and this will set back the next generations. If we don’t get out and talk to the voters now who will?”

The ability for high schoolers to participate and have their voice heard on the national level should not be taken for granted. Encouragement should be given to all who participate or attempt to connect and educate fellow citizens on policies and American ideals. For the nation, it is best to learn about the laws and principles of government and citizenship in hopes of keeping liberty and not losing to a lack of care in an experimental nation.

To read more from The Feather see Momentum Campaign second phase: new classrooms, Senior Lifer – Silas Emerian.