Appalachian State University’s Student Government Association tripled its student voter education budget after being awarded a $7,000 grant Monday.

The money comes from the $1 fee every UNC system student pays in tuition to fund the UNC system Association of Student Governments. The $7,000 is out of the $50,000 that ASG set aside out of their $200,000 operating budget for voter education funds.

SGA Chief of Staff Adam Ezell worked on obtaining the grant for Appalachian.

“The reason this is so important is because being a part of the university, we believe, is becoming civically engaged and civically involved and understanding what is going on around you,” he said. “That’s what this civic education grant is about, to make sure students are able to understand and acquire the knowledge to know what is happening on campus and what is happening in the Town of Boone.”

The grant will allow SGA to do more for voter education.

“We want to do a lot of awareness-oriented media because of the fact that our precincts were jumbled around and the voter locations were changed,” Ezell said. “We are also looking at ways to mobilize voters.”

Ezell said that some possible ways SGA is looking to do this is with bouncy houses at registration drive, having Yosef cheer on voters and handing out T-shirts promoting student voting.

“We are trying to be creative, this is student money,” SGA President Dylan Russell said. “We want to make sure that we are using it appropriately, and we’re excited to have this grant.”

Russell said that other clubs and organizations on campus have been working with SGA to decide how the money will be used.

“It has been an honor to say that we have the College Republicans and College Democrats sitting at the same table collectively making decisions on how to spend this money,” Russell said. “We are trying to bring in as many people as possible to make sure we have an informed and civically engaged community here.”

Story: STEPHANIE SANSOUCY, News Editor