BERKELEY -- In celebration of National Voter Registration Day, Cal Athletics is proud to announce a number of department-wide and fan voting initiatives focused on voter registration and education ahead of the November presidential election.

In addition to the NCAA Division I Council's civic engagement legislation, which provides an opportunity for student-athletes around the country to participate in voting or community service on the first Tuesday in November every year, four members of the lacrosse team spearheaded the #GoBearsGoVote initiative to inspire each of their eligible peers among Cal Athletics' 850 student-athletes to register to vote. 

As part of the #GoBearsGoVote initiative, lacrosse student-athletes LizaBanks Campagna, Kamryn Lanier, Catherine Roxas and Nikki Zaccaro are facilitating voter registration and education presentations to Cal's 30 intercollegiate athletic teams. With a primary goal of 100 percent voter registration for student-athletes who are eligible to vote in the United States, the presentation includes education on deadlines and other elements of the voting process, as well as how to request absentee ballots from each student-athlete's home state. Both lacrosse and men's basketball are among Cal's programs who have already registered 100 percent of eligible student-athletes to vote. 

"A big focus for us is figuring out how to get in front of each team to ensure that at the very least every student-athlete has the resources to be registered to vote," Campagna said.

Several teams have also participated in the online "Athletes Who Vote" challenge, including women's basketball, women's gymnastics, lacrosse and women's water polo, with more teams scheduled to complete the challenge.

"We've been successful garnering the support of the athletic department," Roxas added. "Having the athletic department backing us helps remind coaches and all the other people behind the scenes that this is a top priority."

Fans can join the #GoBearsGoVote campaign by texting "GoBears" to 26797 for voter registration links, and to receive voter education resources, including information on area-specific candidates and ballot measures leading up to Election Day.

On social media, fans can participate by using the #GoBearsGoVote hashtag. Cal Athletics will also create special "Golden Bears Vote" Cal-themed digital assets, including an Instagram filter, GIFs and a Facebook profile frame for fans to access, which will be available in the coming weeks.