Pate, along with Marshall County Auditor/Recorder Nan Benson, presented the students with the Carrie Chapman Catt Award, which is named after the women’s suffrage movement icon who graduated from Iowa State University.

“One of the things to recognize is this is one of your rights for your whole life is to vote, and please note that you want to vote in all elections that you’re eligible (for),” Benson said. “A lot of people don’t vote in those local elections. That’s where a lot of your tax dollars go. As you become an adult, that’s where your money goes.”

After Benson wrapped up her remarks, Pate provided a brief summary of Catt’s life and why the fight for women’s voting rights took so long to ultimately succeed. He established the award as a way to honor her and encourage Iowans to register so they are able to vote once they turn 18. A few years ago, the state legislature passed a law allowing 17-year-olds to vote in primaries if they will turn 18 before the general election.

“We’ve seen literally thousands of 17-year-olds step up and register now and vote in primaries,” Pate said. “Some of the older folks like myself, my age group, we always refer to you guys as the future generations or the future leaders, and I submit to you (that) you are already the leaders. So many of you have already done that in so many different ways.”

Members of the West Marshall senior class along with Pate, Wertzberger, Benson and Superintendent Jacy Large pose for a photo with their Carrie Chapman Catt Award trophy on Wednesday morning.

As Pate explained, voting impacts all aspects of life from educational curriculum to driving rules and regulations and everything in between, and students should have “a voice at the table” in shaping the future they want to see for themselves and their children.

High School Social Studies teacher Amy Jo Wertzberger got a shout out for her active encouragement of students in helping them to get registered, and West Marshall was one of just 31 school districts out of over 300 from around the state to earn the award.

“I think with young people, you just have to present them with issues that they understand and care about and learn about. In my classroom, we do that a lot,” Wertzberger said. “We talk about a current event almost every day at the beginning of class, and it kind of gets them paying attention to ‘Oh, government actually has a bigger impact on my life than I think.'”

In a subsequent interview, Pate said his job is easy because “Iowans get it,” and the state consistently scores high marks in nationwide rankings on election administration. Iowa also has tools available allowing for voter registration and updates and providing polling locations entirely online.

“Particularly in the younger generation, their mobile device is their life link, and so I think we’re on the right track,” Pate said.

Benson also made a pitch to anyone who is interested in becoming an election worker during the June 7 primary.

“Let’s be lifelong learners, see how this process works and then you can encourage your friends to do the same,” she said.