Meadow Bridge High School celebrates 30th consecutive Jennings Randolph Award

FAYETTE COUNTY, WV (LOOTPRESS) – On Thursday, April 25, WV Secretary of State Mac Warner traveled to Fayette County to present Meadow Bridge High School (MBHS) with the Jennings Randolph Award for Civic Engagement . Jennings Randolph Award-winning schools are public and private West Virginia high schools that have a student-led effort to register to vote at least 85% of their eligible senior class. MBHS is one of only 30 schools in the state that have received this prestigious recognition for the 2023-24 school year.

This year’s ceremony was particularly noteworthy for MBHS, as the school is celebrating its 30th consecutive year qualifying for the Jennings Randolph Award. Created by the WV Secretary of State’s Office in 1994, the Jennings Randolph Award commemorates our late U.S. Senator Jennings Randolph’s legacy as the Father of the 26th Amendment. One of the defining moments in voting rights history, the 26th Amendment was passed in 1971. The Amendment lowered the voting age from 21 to 18.

Meadow Bridge High School is the only school in the state to have qualified for the Award every year since the program’s inception. Beyond the 85% voter registration threshold required to qualify, MBHS has earned gold-level recognition for registering 100% of their eligible students every year since Secretary Warner took Office in 2017.

“For 30 years, Meadow Bridge High School has set the standard for civic education in the classroom,” said Secretary of State Mac Warner. “Getting students engaged and interested in the election process at a young age will keep them engaged for life.”

Student leaders who were instrumental in registering their peers are recommended by the school’s principal for the special designation of Honorary Secretaries of State (HSOS). HSOS students Daron Walker and Jonathan Blair, both seniors at MBHS, spent a day at the State Capitol during the legislative session as guests of Secretary Warner.

In attendance with Secretary Warner was Fayette County Clerk Michelle Holly, WV State Senator Jack David Woodrum, Delegate Tom Fast and retired State School Board member Dave Perry. Principal Stacy White accepted the Award on behalf of the school.