Our Mission
Kids Voting USA® (KVUSA) is working to secure the future of democracy by preparing young people to be educated, engaged voters. Kids Voting Dayton Region fosters an informed, participating electorate by education and actively engaging students and their families in voting and other elements of effective civic engagement.
Our Vision
Be recognized as Miami Valley’s leading non-profit provider of civic education.
Establish program framework to enable youth to engage in meaningful civic responsibility.
Grow citizenship by enabling children and their families with the experience and tools to engage in democracy.
Organization History and Purpose
Kids Voting USA was created in 1988 by three businessmen inspired by the commitment to democracy they witnessed while on a trip to Costa Rica. The businessmen observed that it was a custom in Costa Rica for children to accompany their parents to the polls on Election Day. Children’s early introduction to the democratic process has yielded an engaged population. In Costa Rica voter turnout is consistently 80 percent or higher. Developed after this simple premise of early engagement, the Kids Voting USA network of state organizations has grown to reach 5 million students, 200,000 teachers, 6,000 schools, 80,000 volunteers and 20,000 voter precincts.
The Dayton Ohio Region affiliate was established by Max Jennings and Doris Ponitz in 1992, and now serves educators, children, and their families in 6 counties.
Kids Voting Supporters
For those partners helping us teach the power of democracy, we say thank you!
Website Credits
The KV Council would like to give a special thank you to Nova Creative Group, and Bill Rieger specifically, for their help in creating the Kids Voting Dayton website.
We would also like to thank Mike Kurtz and his team at Media Production Group for their role in creating the video component of our web site's front page.
The web site has been created thanks to the talent of these individuals and companies supporting young voices while teaching the power of democracy!
