---
title: Can a Giant Turtle Shell Full of Games Lure Young Voters?
date: 2024-03-25T05:30:00-04:00
author: University of Maryland
canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/can-a-giant-turtle-shell-full-of-games-lure-young-voters"
section: Articles
---
# Can a Giant Turtle Shell Full of Games Lure Young Voters?

*March 25, 2024* — by [Karen Shih ’09](/author/karen-shih)


> New Course Designs Creative Ways to Increase College Participation in 2024 Election

*Design And Democracy Class 03112024 SC 5272 1920x1080 — Architecture major and creative placemaking minor Ema Rajala '25 shares their proposal in a new class called "Design and Democracy," which brings together architecture, art, public policy and government and politics majors to develop pop-up installations to engage students about voting.*

 Nose-deep in the latest TikTok, AirPods jammed into their ears, sunglasses obscuring their eyes—many students don’t take in the world around them as they rush from class to class.

But could a giant Testudo shell packed with games capture their attention? Or mysterious stacked black boxes? Or a multistory projection onto a building’s entrance pillars?

Those are among the many ideas from students in a new University of Maryland class this spring, “Design and Democracy,” which brings together architecture, public policy, government and politics, and art majors to develop pop-up proposals to encourage more college students to register and vote this presidential election year.

Research shows that “the act of voting often leads students to be more interested in gaining civic knowledge and participating in their communities,” said Arts for All Designer-in-Residence Hannah Smotrich, an associate professor of design at the University of Michigan, who is co-teaching the class with UMD architecture Professor Ronit Eisenbach. The course was inspired by the Creative Campus Voting Project at Michigan, co-led by Smotrich, and the Eisenbach-led creative placemaking minor, and is part of UMD’s [Arts for All](https://arts.umd.edu/) initiative.


*pamphlet on voting*


*Lego model of voting pop-up project*




**Topics:** [Campus & Community](https://today.umd.edu/tags/campus-community)


**Tags:** [Government and Politics](https://today.umd.edu/topic/government-and-politics), [2024 Elections](https://today.umd.edu/topic/2024-elections), [Student Experience](https://today.umd.edu/topic/student-experience)


**Units:** [College of Arts and Humanities](https://today.umd.edu/topic/college-arts-and-humanities), [College of Behavioral and Social Sciences](https://today.umd.edu/topic/college-behavioral-and-social-sciences), [School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation](https://today.umd.edu/topic/school-architecture-planning-and-preservation), [School of Public Policy](https://today.umd.edu/topic/school-public-policy)