At my university in Virginia, the Introductory Economics class (1,000 students strong) is being given an exam on Election Day from 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM (close of polls). Students fear these exams and study intensely for them because admissions to the Commerce School depends, in large part, on doing well in Intro Econ.
The course professor is not willing to let students postpone the exam in order to vote, nor will he let them postpone the exam to volunteer in getting out the vote. This even though there is already a scheduled make-up time available to students with a "valid" excuse!
The Professor is a well-known conservative economist.
Does this smell as rotten to you as it does to me?
The professor argues that students should face the same hurdles to voting as everyone else (not that most people are precluded from going to their polling place at close of polls and waiting in line). He believes students can wake up early that day to vote.
He is unmoved by the fact that the dramatic voter registration increases among students and projected high turnout could lead to long lines throughout the day. He also ignores that the polling places are a half an hour walk from the dorms where the freshmen (who don't have cars) live. Most of all he ignores the unnecessary extra pressure he is putting students under. As an economist, he should know that he is deterring the marginal voter by raising costs unnecessarily.
Extra credit for those who have figured out what school and what professor I'm talking about.
Now the question is what is to be done?
Is this going on anywhere else?
[Update] I wanted to point out that the professor has also refused to allow information about absentee in-person ("early voting with an excuse") to be made available via e-mail to his class list. I agree with some of the commenters below that people should plan ahead, but my point is that most of these students are first time voters who don't really understand a lot of the process. This kind of stern schoolmarmish attitude toward students figuring things out on their own is why so frequently in the past youth turnout has been so low.