Richmond attends Student Day of Action events at the Capitol
Student Experience
Spiders were counted among the dozens from Virginia colleges who met with legislators, observed floor votes, and attended policy workshops.
The Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy’s Student Day of Action, held at the State Capitol in January, attracted students from campuses around the state to meet and share their opinions with legislators. For sophomore Julia Murphy this was her first lobbying trip to the Capitol, and her intention was to make a difference.
“It is common for youth to feel a sense of helplessness politically, and many students want to get more engaged but need some guidance on where to start,” said Murphy, a political science and rhetoric & communications double major. “The VICPP Student Day of Action is a great place for students to begin taking those first steps toward political advocacy.”
VICPP is a nonprofit organization that advocates for economic, racial, and social justice in Virginia. They began organizing the Student Day of Action in 2021.
“UR students have participated every year. It is a great opportunity for them to connect with students from across the commonwealth, to meet with legislators, and to put advocacy into action,” said Sasha Hollister, assistant director of community relationships and place-based engagement for the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement, which helped facilitate campus involvement.
Nine University of Richmond students were among the more than 70 college students from across the state who attended the event.
“The UR students are always very impressive. They come prepared to speak intelligently on issues and make a good impression on legislators representing the Richmond area and beyond,” said Terri Erwin, director of the Virginia Consensus for Higher Education in Prison for the VICPP.
Students visited about 45 members of Virginia’s General Assembly and their aides, observed floor votes, and attended workshops on policy topics, including maternal mortality, filmmaking for justice, and grassroots advocacy.
“Virginia Interfaith lets students know that this event is not a field trip for them to observe government in action, even though that certainly happens,” said Erwin. “Rather, we invest in Student Day of Action because we believe in building the visibility and influence of young Virginians in the public life of the Commonwealth. Convening students year after year from across the state to talk with legislators about a range of issues is one way to advance that goal.”
The evening before, students attended a fellowship dinner with legislators and community leaders held at the Creighton campus of Saint Paul’s Baptist Church and participated in a class that guided them through the lobbying process.
“Being able to talk to legislators and their staff about policies that mattered to me was very rewarding, and I walked away feeling as though I had made a difference,” Murphy said. She advocated for a policy that makes it easier for faith-based institutions to build affordable housing developments on their property.
“My family has experienced the difficulties of the affordable housing shortage rampant across the United States and my heart aches for those who are left without housing because of it,” Murphy said.
She was surprised at how easy it was to talk to the legislators. “This is a very important individual with considerable decision-making power, but you can speak to them one-on-one like a real person.”
It was also Tyler Roy’s first time at the VICPP Student Day of Action. “I thought it was important to attend because despite how connected everything may seem on social media, it can feel impossible trying to get the attention and ear of people who can make a difference in our communities through legislative policy,” Roy said.
The third-year law student who plans to pursue a career in criminal law advocated for a cause close to his heart — making college education more accessible to incarcerated individuals. “Ninety-five percent of people in Virginia prisons will be re-entering society at some point in the future. By allowing those incarcerated to work towards college degrees in prison, it allows them to more successfully re-enter our communities, live better lives, and reduce recidivism rates,” Roy said.
Both Roy and Murphy plan to stay involved in government. “I think it is important for young people to recognize that they possess the power to make change,” Murphy said.