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25 days left to register to vote in Presidential election BRITTANI PFAU Co-Executive Editor Time is running out for Texans to vote in the Nov. 6 presedential election. Oct. 9 is the deadline to register. Voters who did not vote in the May 29 primary election are still qualified to vote in the general election. Early voting begins Oct. 22. To register to vote, students must to fill out a voter’s
registration application or register in person. Students can register in person or register by mail by obtaining an application at their county voter registrar’s office. (In most Texas counties, the Tax AssessorCollector is also the Voter Registrar. In some counties, the County Clerk or Elections Administrator registers voters.) After being submitted by the county voter registrar, a student’s
registration becomes effective 30 days after being submitted. A voter card will then be mailed to the voter who will need to sign by the “X” on the yellow area on the front side of the card. Students will need to take this card with them to the polls to vote. For more information about voting procedures, registration or absentee ballots, students can visit votexas.org.
To be eligible to vote in Texas: be a U.S. citizen be a resident of the country be at least 18 years old (you may register at 17 years and 10 months) not be a convicted felon (unless a person’s sentence is completed, including any probabtion or parole) not declared mentally incapacitated by a court of law.
The Flare
Friday, September 14, 2012 Vol. 76 No. 2 Serving Kilgore College since 1936
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The
BIG QUESTION
Campaign encourages students to graduate from community colleges
I
ASHTON JOHNSON • Co-Executive Editor
t’s no secret that four-year universities are struggling to increase graduation rates, but the situation is even more dire at the nation’s community colleges.
Kris Dobbins / FLARE PHOTO ILLUSTRATION
Community colleges enroll more than one-half of students in higher education in Texas. In order to sustain and grow the economic base of the state and safeguard the well-being of its residents, community colleges will have to educate even more students. “We believe finishing what we start has value,” said Dr. Bill Holda, KC president. “With KC’s involvement in Achieving the Dream and other success initiatives, we want to improve
Bre a k i n g n ews, videos an d exten ded cover age at www.thef lareonline. com
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student success, and graduation is one of those ways.” Community colleges are wellpositioned to accomplish this goal because of their geographic accessibility to populations across the state, the relatively low cost of tuition and the close relationship these institutions have with area businesses and industries to train and retain the workforce. “We are persons who experience See GRADUATION on Page 3