Marshall University has several activities planned in honor of the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which gave women the right to vote. The yearlong celebration is already underway and will continue with academic, campus-wide and community activities that both recognize this critical accomplishment of America’s courageous, trailblazing 20th Century women and encourage today’s American women to wield their voting power.
Marshall’s activities are included in the statewide celebration, the details of which can be found at https://sos.wv.gov/about/Pages/WV19Amend.aspx.
“Marshall University Women’s and Gender Center is proud to be part of the fabulous network of amazing women and men who are planning our Suffrage Centennial events. These programs are a wonderful way to engage our students and the community in a deeper understanding of the hard-fought battles that earned women the right to vote,” said Leah Tolliver, director of MU wellness and gender programs.
Marshall’s list of activities can be found online at www.marshall.edu/womenvote.
“Women were not simply given the right to vote, they had to fight tirelessly for it, so that is why participating in events that celebrate and honor those who blazed a trail for civic engagement and equality is so critically important,” said Sara Payne Scarbro, vice president for external engagement for the Marshall University Research Corporation and member of coordinating committee for the West Virginia centennial celebration of the 19th Amendment. “I appreciate Marshall University’s faculty, experts and staff for helping to facilitate many dynamic and engaging 19th Amendment activities and for our university also being an important partner to our state by serving on Secretary of State Mac Warner’s coordinating committee.”
The following are among Marshall University’s planned activities:
Through December 2020, MU Women’s Suffrage Centennial Voter Registration Campaign
Tables at every suffrage event. For further information contact Marshall University Women’s & Gender Center at 304-696-3338 or wcenter@marshall.edu
Tuesday, April 7, 10 a.m., Joan C. Edwards Playhouse
Office of the President, Simon Perry Center for Constitutional Democracy, John Deaver Drinko Academy
4th Circuit Federal Court of Appeals Oral Argument Session. For more information, contact the Simon Perry Center for Constitutional Democracy by phone at 304-696-2801 or by e-mail to patricia.proctor@marshall.edu.
Week of Welcome: Tuesday-Friday, Aug. 18-21, Memorial Student Center Plaza
Tabling, event promotion, voter registration, other activities for Marshall freshman students.
First Week of Classes: Monday-Friday, Aug. 24-28, Memorial Student Center Plaza
Tabling, event promotion, voter registration, other activities for Marshall students, faculty, and staff.
Wednesday, Aug. 26, Time to be determined, Beginning at the Memorial Student Center Plaza
Women’s Equality Day: Women’s Suffrage March
In partnership with the League of Women Voters of the Huntington Area and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. For more information, contact Wendy Thomas by e-mail at wxthomas@frontier.com or the Marshall University Women’s and Gender Center by phone at 304-696-3338.
Thursday, Sept. 17, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. U.S. Constitution and Citizenship Day
Voter registration table in MSC and free pocket Constitution distribution to students
For more information, contact the Drinko Academy by e-mail at 304-696-3183.
Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2 p.m. Francis-Booth Experimental Theatre (pending confirmation) MU Constitution Celebration Robert C. Byrd Forum on Civic Responsibility:
Congress to Campus Program (featuring two female former members of Congress)
John Deaver Drinko Academy.
For more information, contact Dr. Montserrat Miller by e-mail at millerm@marshall.edu.
September-date to be determined. MU Constitution Celebration Court on Campus Program
Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia Oral Argument Session (featuring first female WV Supreme Court Clerk in the state’s history—Ms. Edythe Nash Gaiser, Esq.). For more information, contact Dr. Montserrat Miller by e-mail at millerm@marshall.edu.
October-date to be determined. Women’s Suffrage Centennial Participation in Homecoming Parade