One of the hallmarks of a Tisch School of the Arts education is the critical exploration of the role of the arts, and of artists, in society. This begins in a student’s very first year, in the core curriculum: Art in the World and the Work Through Art. This year freshmen will read the summer 2016 issue of Aperture magazine, titled “Vision & Justice,” which addresses the role of photography in the African American experience. Later in the semester—on the Day of Community, October 21--they will attend a special plenary session of Art in the World for a conversation between Deb Willis, University Professor and chair of our Department of Photography & Imaging, whose work is represented in “Vision & Justice,” and noted artist and Tisch alumnus Hank Willis Thomas.
Tisch students also become critically engaged with societal issues through courses in Art & Public Policy, Performance Studies, and relevant CAS courses, as well as through participation in campus clubs and organizations. This fall, though, there is one paramount way for Tisch students who are US citizens to become involved, and that is to register to vote and then vote in the fall elections.
NYU students have put together a website, NYU Votes, that is packed with helpful information about how to register to vote, both here in New York and in students’ home states, and how to vote by absentee ballot. NYU’s Student Resource Center, located in room 210 of the Kimmel Center, is also hosting a walk-in registration drive during Welcome Week (August 28—September 2) from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm for students wanting to register to vote in New York or to find out how to register and vote by absentee ballot in their home states.
Research has indicated that so-called millennials register and vote in smaller numbers than other age groups. Prove the experts wrong this fall. Register to vote. Then vote!