Alexandra Marquez, a Media, Self and Society Scholars alum and a 2021 graduate of the University of Maryland, was recently named Standout Undergraduate Student by the All in Democracy Challenge, a coalition of 850 higher education institutions across the country. The All in Democracy Challenge empowers colleges and universities to achieve excellence in nonpartisan student democratic engagement.
Marquez—who wrote a blog post for College Park Scholars during the 2018 midterm elections on the importance of voting—served as co-chair of the TerpsVote Coalition in 2020-2021. She had previously served as civic engagement director for the Student Government Association and had interned with TerpsVote when she was in Media Scholars.
During the 2020 elections, 71.3 percent of students voted, an increase of almost 10 percent from 60.7 percent in 2016. The national average was reportedly 66 percent.