Let's make history together and get the adult learner and educator vote out in record numbers in the 2004 elections! This fall the New England Literacy Resource Center (NELRC) will be launching the 2004 Voter Education, Registration, and Action campaign (VERA 04). Its goal is to educate adult learners and educators about voting and the topical electoral issues, and to mobilize them to vote in the 2004 elections. NELRC will be recruiting teachers and programs from across New England to participate in the VERA campaign by educating students about representative democracy, voting, and topical election issues through instruction and workshops;encouraging and helping students and staff to register to vote; encouraging and helping students and staff get to the polls and vote; tracking the number of students and staff, how many voted and how many voted for the first time; and submitting a brief report to NELRC.

Participating programs will receive copies of the March 2004 issue of NELRC's Change Agent paper devoted to "Voting in the 2004 Elections." This issue will cover relevant content related to voting, democracy, and the most topical issues in the 2004 presidential elections. Some articles will serve as background reading for the teachers while others will be ready for use in the classroom accompanied by activities, graphics, or discussion questions. Campaign participants will also receive information about resource people and organizations in their state. As this issue of Field Notes goes to press, NELRC is in conversation with several potential partner organizations. If you're intersested in joining the campaign, would like more information, or have some suggestions, please contact NELRC board member and Massachusetts VERA committee convener, Carol Bower at Northeast SABES office: cbower@necc.mass.edu. Carol serves on the New England VERA 04 steering committee.

Silja Kallenbach is the director of the NELRC and she can be reached at: skallenbach@worlded.org