A high-ranking official visited AACC to stress the importance of civic engagement at an event on Tuesday.

The Office of Student Engagement invited William Rowel, the Annapolis mayor’s senior adviser, to discuss issues that affect students and how students can get civically involved as a part of the Voter Education Lunch & Learn series.

“By the time we’re casting a vote, if we don’t understand how impactful we are in other people’s lives … we’re actually doing more damage,” Rowel said. 

Rowel said he visited AACC because he takes “any opportunity” to “convey new thoughts” to younger people.

“There’s nothing more important to me,” Rowel said. “[They’re] the hope of the future.”

Rowel said it’s “only logical” to “elevate young people.”

“Look: five, 10 years down the road … who’s going to be driving the cars?” Rowel said. “Who’s going to be flying the airplanes? Who’s going to be living in any house that we think of building? It is going to be those young people. … If we don’t engage with them, what are we doing?”

Reaching out to people who are personally affected by political issues is important, according to Rowel.

“My personal belief is that the people closest to the issue and the problem are the people closest to the solution,” Rowel said. “Keep in mind that we are trying to build and foster and create a pathway for a better world for people that are not us.”

Second-year transfer studies student Aster Irons said he came to the event to “do my part.”

“I would like the world [that] I live in to be a peaceful place,” Irons said. “I want to learn more about, like, the systems in place to … contribute to making the world a [better] place.”

Irons said attending events like this is important for students.

“[By] learning about issues, you can open yourself up to finding solutions,” Irons said. “You can open yourself up to finding different ways to help.”