Article written by Ainsley Hall and published in The Journal on April 6, 2026, link to article HERE.
Hedgesville High School earned the Jennings Randolph Award after every eligible student registered to vote. West Virginia Secretary of State Kris Warner visited the school to celebrate this accomplishment.
Hedgesville High School seniors Caitlin Hall and Julianne Haderer both attended Girls State this past summer, where they first learned about the Jennings Randolph Award. This honor is given to high schools that have at least 85% of eligible students registered to vote. Hall's older siblings earned the award several years ago, so feeling inspired by them she decided to do the same. Hall and Haderer both agreed to work together to earn it for their class.
“We both understand the importance of civic engagement, especially from our generation, from the youth,” Hall said. “So, we wanted to make sure that everyone was informed and able to vote.”
In August, Hall and Haderer visited every civics class because its required for every senior. Students were already learning how to register and the importance of fulfilling their civic duty. Hall and Haderer explained what they wanted to do and held a drive in the classroom, making it easy for everyone. Not only did they receive the Jennings Randolph Award, but they also earned the gold level after 100% of the class registered to vote.
“Some people were really averse to registering at first, so I was really excited to hear that we convinced them and changed their minds on it,” Haderer said.
“It gave me hope because I feel like some people don’t seem very involved politically or civically, or they sometimes seem like they don’t care,” Hall added. “I mean, we’re seniors in high school. A lot of people are just looking towards the future. And so, it was really inspiring to see people actually care about the world we live in and make the step to implementing change.”
Warner also added that sometimes people will choose not to register as a form of protest. He said that it’s up to every individual to make that decision, but Hall and Harderer were able to convince everyone to register so they at least have the opportunity to vote.
During the presentation, Warner congratulated the students on their accomplishment and invited Saira Blair, the youngest person to serve as a West Virginia State Delegate, to come speak. Blair shared how she was elected in 2014 as a freshman in college, representing the 59th District, and encouraged the students to get involved by reading the news, volunteering to help on election campaigns, finding issues they are passionate about, educating themselves on candidates and actually getting out to vote.
“There’s nothing like returning to the place that raised me, grew me and gave me the skills that I needed to serve and to get to share that message back with the next generation” Blair said.
Jennings Randolph served as a United States Senator from 1958 to 1985, representing West Virginia. During that time, millions of young Americans between the ages 18 and 21 were being sent off to war, but because of the law they weren’t allowed to vote. Randolph was instrumental in changing that.
“They were being sent off to war and they didn’t even have the opportunity to vote for the president that was sending them off to war,” Warner said. “And so his story was if you’re old enough to go fight and die for your country, then essentially, ‘If you’re old enough for bullets, you’re old enough for ballots.’”
Randolph introduced the bill 11 times to lower the register voting age to 18 before the bill was finally passed, becoming the 26th Amendment. The Jennings Randolph Award is designed to honor his memory and resilience while also encouraging young voters to register and make their voices heard.
“We have a strong history, and we’re proud of that history,” Warner said. “To then see 100% of these high school seniors recognize the importance of being able to vote, it kind of brings it all together.”