Ann Arbor City Clerk’s

Satellite Office @ UMMA

a gallery in U-M's art museum transformed into a hub for student voting

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One of our most impactful projects in 2020 was creating a City Clerk’s office, visible in the center of campus life. Over six weeks, 5,412 voters registered and 8,501 ballots were collected! We designed every aspect of the experience to be welcoming and reassuring for new college-age voters. The project was recognized by SEGD (Society for Environmental Graphic Design) Global Design Awards 2021 and shortlisted for Social Design by DesignWeek.

Juror, SEGD

"This project really serviced a need in our nation and society."

Trained student volunteers welcomed their peers and helped them navigate forms and documents so they would be prepared for their turn with a clerk.

UMMA_Voting(01)_Photo Credit Eric Bronso

Register. Request a ballot. VOTE early HERE! was our branding identity for the project. This language, on walls, windows and t-shirts, publicized the office and made Michigan’s new streamlined voting process explicit. Students could register, request an absentee ballot, and return their ballot all in one visit.

We thought carefully about the guidance that new voters might need and designed a sequence of information delivery at each phase of the process. Within the privacy of the voting booth, the rules for filling out the ballot were explained; a checklist at the drop box helped visitors make sure their vote would be counted.

GALLERY

Clerks were particularly attentive to the fact that many of the students were first-time voters.

photo: Mark Gjukic

Students could complete the whole voting process — from registering through dropping off their ballot — in one visit.

photo: Mark Gjukic

ThankS to our partners

The Ann Arbor City Clerk's Office @ UMMA would not have been possible without the vision and efforts of Ann Arbor City Clerk Jacqueline Beaudry and her longtime collaborator Professor Edie Goldenberg (Ford School). Briannon Cierpilowski spearheaded the initiative at UMMA, which welcomed the project with open arms. Michael Rein (U-M Office of the Vice President for Government Relations) facilitated the complicated behind-the-scenes logistics and dedicated UM student volunteers with Turn Up Turnout and the Big Ten Voting Challenge worked long hours to assist their peers and keep democracy rolling! Thanks to University of Michigan's Democracy and Debate Theme Semester for generously supporting this project.

Photos by Eric Bronson / Michigan Photography, Mark Gjukic, and Stephanie Rowden

Video and Music by Sky Christoph