PSSA Club welcomes civic discussions

By Buu-Tran Duong
Freelance Reporter

LCC's Political Science Student Association (PSSA) will have its first Student Debate Day on Wednesday, March 13 from 3:30 to 4 p.m. in A&S room 2312. The topic will be “Does the Constitution Contain a Right to Abortion?”

The PSSA does not stray from controversial topics, according to Club President and political science major Abby Gaskill, who said she wants students to come participate or spectate.

Gaskill emphasized the club is not looking to pressure students to agree with any one person's point of view. The intention is to promote important civic discussions despite disagreement.

"The constitution is interpreted in so many different ways,” Gaskill said. “I think it's really interesting to see what way people interpret it."

PSSA members encourage interest in politics, civic engagement and respectful conversation on current issues. The club meets on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month from 3:30 to 4 p.m. in A&S room 2312.

PSSA President Abby Gaskill discusses student voter initiative Feb. 16 Photo by Buu-Tran Duong

PSSA officials met on Feb. 16 to discuss voter engagement on campus, with the Feb. 27 Michigan Presidential Primary looming less than a week away.

Gaskill said she wants LCC to be more civically engaged, with LCC statistics showing Nursing and Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs having a lower voter engagement than, for example, Political Science.

"Learning how to vote is almost like this civic education in its own right because you're teaching people how to navigate American bureaucracy," said Assistant Professor of Political Science and Club Adviser Dr. Michael Giles.

Club Treasurer and political science major Keshava Demerath-Shanti also spoke about voting procedures.

"Last year, Michigan became the first state that registers people when they get released from prison,” Demerath-Shanti said. “So they tried to get rid of a lot of that bureaucracy."

Demerath-Shanti created a poster with QR codes to quickly point students toward voter registration and applying for an absentee ballot. The PSSA Club hopes to display these posters and information at the different LCC campuses to remind students to vote.

Gaskill and Demerath-Shanti also represented LCC at the 2024 Community College National Legislative Summit in Washington, D.C. At this advocacy event, more than 1,000 community college leaders met to educate on federal policy that would impact post-secondary institutions and students.

For chocolate lovers, PSSA will be present for the Social Science and Humanities Department's “Cocoa and Cookies” event at the Humanities Lounge in A&S room 2203 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Feb. 28.

If interested in meeting PSSA and learning more about community opportunities, email President Gaskill at gaskila1@mail.lcc.edu or Adviser Dr. Giles at giles6@lcc.edu.