Research shows that campaigns that directly contact young people boost youth turnout. Knocking on young people's doors to talk about an election increases their turnout by about 25 percent.
Tufts University's Tisch College has been analyzing data on youth voting in every election cycle since 2002. Our research consistently shows that young people respond well when they are invited to participate.
While taking a bus to a primary state offers a great opportunity, it's not an option at most campuses most of the time. As the dean of a leading institution on civic engagement and political participation, I see clearly that raising the national youth turnout - and increasing political learning, generally - requires a broad range of strategies.
Young people have the power to shape elections. They represent a major potential political force: 49 million young people, ages 18-29, are eligible to vote - more than the 45 million eligible seniors.
On the other hand, young people's potential to shape elections goes largely unfulfilled. In 2014, only 19.9 percent of 18- to 29-year-old citizens said they voted - the lowest youth turnout rate ever recorded in a federal election.
First, registering can be a challenge for young people. In the 2008 election, 84 percent of youth (ages 18-29) who were registered to vote actually cast a ballot. In 2012, of the young people who weren't registered, 17 percent said they had missed the deadline and another 7 percent said they did not know where or how to register.
For example, at the historically black college in North Carolina, Livingstone, an event that created a fun atmosphere with music, prizes and free food, as well as candidate presentations, resulted in the registration of nearly 400 of the school's roughly 1,000 students in the 2008 national election, according to a report by Democracy North Carolina.
At the University of Houston-Downtown, the student government organized a "Walk 2 Vote" initiative in 2012 and 2014. Creating the "buzz" attracted students and local youth. They are now trying to replicate this on other campuses.
The fact is that voting is habit-forming and is often a gateway to other forms of civic engagement. At a time when young people face enormous challenges - crushing student debt, unemployment and mass incarceration - supporting them to vote will help raise a new generation of citizens who actively engage in our democracy.