Kerri McCarthy, a graduate student in her final semester of the Master of Public Policy Program at The College of New Jersey, was recognized on Apr. 16 as a recipient of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge Student Voting Honor Roll for her leadership in nonpartisan campus civic engagement.
This recognition highlights efforts to promote student involvement in democratic processes and underscores the importance of civic engagement among college students. The award is part of a national program that encourages higher education institutions to help students become active and informed citizens.
McCarthy, who completed her undergraduate degree in criminology from TCNJ in 2025, serves as a graduate assistant in the Office of Co-Curricular Leadership Development. She has worked closely with the TCNJ Votes initiative to plan and implement voter engagement efforts on campus. “For the past year, civic engagement has been a major focus of my work, so it’s really meaningful to have that recognized,” McCarthy said. “TCNJ Votes is about giving students the tools to be informed and involved. Our role is to give students access, whether that meant helping them register, providing ballots, or even walking them through the process step by step.”
She led initiatives such as voter registration drives and coordinated transportation for students on Election Day. McCarthy also played an important role organizing the New Jersey Voting Summit ahead of the November 2025 Election.
In addition to her campus work, McCarthy recently started full-time as an intelligence analyst with Major League Baseball’s Global Intelligence division. She said this position draws upon analytical skills developed through public policy studies and civic activities: “That analytical mindset — breaking things down and understanding context — is something I use every day.”
Avani Rana, director of co-curricular and leadership development at TCNJ, praised McCarthy’s contributions: “Kerri has been a great part of the Co-Curricular and Leadership Development team,” Rana said. “She has developed creative ways to engage student-athletes and a variety of student organizations in civic engagement. Kerri’s energy, positivity, and creativity have been valuable assets to our office.”
McCarthy is one out of 168 students nationwide—and nine from New Jersey—to receive this honor from ALL IN.
The College of New Jersey offers degree programs across disciplines such as arts, business and engineering according to its official website. The institution focuses on cultivating critical thinkers and leaders according to its official website, maintains a tree-lined 289-acre campus according to its official website, earned a Phi Beta Kappa chapter in 2006 according to its official website, secured numerous NCAA championships according to its official website, and was honored with the Council on Undergraduate Research award in 2015 according to its official website.
