Home / Corporate / Educational Institutions
Education Solutions

Educational Institutions

FERPA compliant voting for faculty senate, student government, and board trustee elections

Overview

Why VoteSecured for Education?

Educational institutions have unique voting needs: faculty senate elections, student government, trustee selections, and policy referendums. VoteSecured delivers secure, accessible voting that integrates with campus systems while maintaining FERPA compliance and supporting diverse voting methods including ranked-choice.

Cost Reduction
90%
Higher Turnout
3x
FERPA Compliant
100%
Accessible
ADA
Capabilities

Key Features

Student ID Integration

Single sign-on with campus credentials. Integrates with Banner, PeopleSoft, Workday, and other student information systems.

Mobile-First Design

Students vote on their phones between classes. Faculty vote from offices or home. No special equipment needed.

Ranked-Choice Voting

Full support for instant runoff voting (IRV) and single transferable vote (STV) methods. Popular for student government elections.

Accessibility Features

WCAG 2.1 AA compliant. Screen reader support, high contrast mode, keyboard navigation. Meets ADA requirements.

FERPA Compliance

Protected student information handling. Ballot secrecy with participation tracking. Audit trails without identity disclosure.

Campus Network Isolation

Optional on-premises deployment for sensitive elections. Air-gapped from public internet if required.

Applications

Common Use Cases

Challenge: Low student engagement, paper ballot costs, delayed results

Solution: Week-long mobile voting with ranked-choice, real-time participation tracking

Results: Turnout increases from 15% to 45%+, results announced same night polls close

Popular Features: Campaign integration, candidate profiles, live results on election night

Challenge: Department representatives, at-large seats, tenure-track vs non-tenure voting rights

Solution: Configurable constituencies with different voting rules per department

Benefits: Transparent process, instant results, historical voting data for senate archives

Challenge: Alumni voting across decades, multiple candidate fields

Solution: Email-based voter authentication, biographical information for candidates, secure ballot

Features: Weighted voting (by graduation year), proxy voting for class representatives

Challenge: Student fee increases, facility bonds, policy changes requiring campus vote

Solution: Information campaign integration, Q&A forums, detailed proposal presentation

Compliance: Meets state higher education code requirements for student fee referendums

Who We Serve

Institution Types We Serve

Universities & Colleges

  • Public universities (state systems)
  • Private universities
  • Community colleges
  • Liberal arts colleges
  • Technical colleges

K-12 Schools

  • High school student council elections
  • Parent-teacher organization voting
  • School board elections (in some jurisdictions)
  • Student activities and club leadership

Professional Schools

  • Law schools (bar association elections)
  • Medical schools (residency program selections)
  • Business schools (MBA class representatives)
Security

Security & Privacy

FERPA Compliance

  • Student voting history never disclosed to third parties
  • Ballot secrecy maintained while tracking who voted (not how)
  • Educational records protected per 34 CFR Part 99
  • Parental notification not required (18+ voters)

Student Data Protection

  • Minimal data collection (only voter ID and authentication)
  • No sale of student data (prohibited)
  • Data retention aligned with institutional records policy
  • Optional data deletion after election completion

Authentication Options

  • SSO Integration: SAML, OAuth, Shibboleth
  • Student ID + PIN: Alternative for non-SSO campuses
  • Multi-Factor: SMS or email verification as second factor
Investment

Pricing for Education

Academic Pricing (30-50% discount)

  • Small institution (under 5,000): $2,500 per election
  • Medium institution (5,000-15,000): $5,000 per election
  • Large institution (15,000-30,000): $8,500 per election
  • Major university (30,000+): $12,000-$15,000 per election

Annual Academic License

  • Unlimited student government elections
  • Unlimited faculty senate elections
  • 5 campus-wide referendums per year
  • Starting at $15K/year for small institutions
  • Volume discounts for state university systems

What's Included

  • Student information system integration
  • Ranked-choice voting support
  • Accessibility compliance (ADA/Section 508)
  • Unlimited voter support
  • Results dashboards and reporting
  • Training for student government officers and staff
  • White-glove support during voting periods
Case Studies

Educational Success Stories

Large Public University (45,000 students)

Challenge: Paper ballot student government elections cost $15K, turnout 12%

Solution: Week-long mobile voting with campaign integration

Results: Turnout increased to 38%, cost reduced to $10K, instant results saved 3 days

Private Liberal Arts College (3,000 students)

Challenge: Faculty senate needed ranked-choice for at-large seats

Solution: Instant runoff voting with 5-day voting window

Results: 85% faculty participation, transparent process increased trust in senate

State University System (12 campuses)

Challenge: System-wide policy votes across multiple campuses

Solution: Multi-campus deployment with centralized reporting

Results: Coordinated votes across 120,000 students, saved $200K annually

Voting Methods

Ranked-Choice Voting Details

Popular method for student government and faculty elections where multiple candidates run for limited seats.

Supported Methods

  • Instant Runoff Voting (IRV): Single-winner elections, voters rank candidates 1-2-3
  • Single Transferable Vote (STV): Multi-winner elections, proportional representation
  • Borda Count: Point-based system for rankings

Features

  • Visual ballot showing candidate rankings
  • Real-time results with round-by-round elimination visualization
  • Automatic calculation of winners per RCV rules
  • Export results in format required by campus policies
Next Steps

Get Started

Most institutions are live within 2-3 weeks. Free pilot for first small-scale election.

  • Academic pricing: 30-50% discount for educational institutions
  • Free pilot: First club or department election free to test
  • System integration: Works with Banner, PeopleSoft, Workday, Canvas, Blackboard
  • Training included: For administrators, student government, and voters

Ready to Modernize Campus Elections?

Contact our education team to schedule a demo and get your first election free with academic pricing.