HWS News
10 April 2025 • Service Aguilar '25 Goes "All In" for Campus Democracy
As he plans for a career in public policy, HWS Votes Co-President Rafael Aguilar ’25 has been honored for his work planning and coordinating events prior to the 2024 election.
For his dedication to voter engagement during the 2024 election cycle, Rafael Aguilar ’25 has been named one of only 232 students nationwide to the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge Student Voting Honor Roll. The honor roll recognizes student leaders who “have gone above and beyond to advance nonpartisan student voter registration, education and turnout efforts in their communities.”
An international relations major and environmental studies minor, Aguilar serves as the co-president of HWS Votes, the nonpartisan student group devoted to informing students on elections and registering them to vote. During the fall semester, Aguilar played an instrumental role helping students register to vote, requesting absentee ballots and staying informed about important elections, candidates and issues. He also helped organize watch parties for the presidential and vice-presidential debates, and on Election Night. Under Aguilar’s leadership, HWS Votes was recognized as a 2024 ALL IN Most Engaged Campus for College Student Voting.
"Having the space and commitment to practice democracy is instrumental for engagement with our political system,” Aguilar says. “Personal connection pushes people to action. Appreciating the work that voting can do helps political change. Democracy in practice includes voting, but also our principles of organizing, workplaces and decision-making.”
His work for the election season began in the spring as he participated in the Democracy House’s Young Leaders Summer Institute, a nine-week civic education program “designed to prepare rising generations to defend, strengthen and improve democracy.” Each week, guest speakers shared their experiences and expertise in democracy and a weekly small-group discussion to exchange ideas and generate solutions for their communities. This year’s guest speakers included: ALL IN Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives Stephanie King; former Freedom House Interim President and Executive Vice President Nicole Bibbins Sedaca; Partners in Democracy Founder and Chairperson Danielle Allen; the Rita E. Hauser Senior Lecturer in Leadership, Organizing and Civil Society at Harvard University Marshall Ganz and Venezuelan human rights lawyer Genesis Vasquez.
Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning Associate Director Peter Budmen ’15, MAT ’16 says Aguilar’s passion for civic engagement is evident through his work.
“Rafael is passionate about fostering civic discourse and empowering others to use their voices,” says Budmen. “With a comprehensive action plan to engage the HWS community in the 2024 presidential election, he has established a strong foundation for continued impact in civic engagement. We eagerly anticipate his future contributions.”
On campus, Aguilar also serves as a teaching fellow for International Relations, has done research over the summer, attended an alternative spring break trip with Rural Migrant Ministries in Lyons, N.Y., is involved in ORAP, the outdoor recreation and adventure program and has worked to support food recovery and environmental sustainability on campus. Aguilar plans to pursue a career in public policy and advocacy after graduating in May.
