by Keith Archer

In February 2005, at a signing ceremony held on our campus in association with a meeting of lead writers of ACE resource materials, the University of Calgary became the first associate member of the ACE Electoral Knowledge Network. That ceremony was the culmination of discussions held over several years, and the partnership provides an opportunity for ACE partners and the University to work for mutual benefit. This article describes the background of the University’s decision to become an ACE Electoral Knowledge Network associate member, outlines a number of factors that led the University to pursue associate membership and discusses some factors that will lead to a successful partnership.

Writing for the ACE Encyclopaedia

The involvement of the University of Calgary in the Administration and Cost of Elections (ACE) Project began in 1997, when an ACE partner invited me to serve as the lead writer for the Voter Registration materials for the first version of the ACE Encyclopaedia.

Although I had written extensively in my role as a university professor, serving as a lead writer for the ACE Project was a very different experience. For one thing, the material was to be made available electronically rather than in hard copy, a factor which changed the style of writing and altered the amount of materials that could be made available. For example, rather than writing in traditional chapters, the material had to be presented in relatively short (1,500 words) self-contained files that could easily be accessed and read. The format also allowed the insertion of hyperlinks within the text, so that the files could be interconnected in thematic ways. In addition, the use of electronic text allowed the introduction of sample materials. In the voter registration section, items such as examples of voter registration cards, voter registration forms, voter lists, notices of voter registration procedures and voter education materials were included to provide easy reference for ACE users.

Another feature of this project that differed from my academic writing is that much of the information I needed to write resided among the many practitioners who work in national, state/provincial, regional or municipal organizations responsible for conducting elections in their jurisdictions. There was a very limited amount of scholarship available on the topic of voter registration, and much of the available information was specific to its author’s locale. Given this fact, the ACE Project aimed to expand the available knowledge about voter registration largely by induction, by beginning with knowledge of local settings and elaborating a more general and comparative context with the introduction of additional cases and models.

Prior to publication online, the materials developed by the lead writers were reviewed and critiqued by experienced practitioners. Many of these reviewers were highly knowledgeable about the voter registration process used in their jurisdictions but often had less direct experience with systems elsewhere. Therefore, the review process provided both an initial “reality check” of the materials being produced and also provided an important learning opportunity for the election officials who were serving as reviewers.

Partnering with ACE

From the time of the initial ACE project launch in the fall of 1998, it was clear that this initiative was responding to a real need in the election administration environment. It offered election administration practitioners around the world a resource that was relatively easy to access and provided useful information without being prescriptive. Shortly after the launch, ACE members began to discuss the idea of transforming ACE from an information repository to a more formal educational and accrediting system.

While the idea seemed intriguing, it was not developed very fully until the expansion of the ACE partnership in 2004 to include all seven partners (see previous page). The result was the ACE Electoral Knowledge Network, which includes three elements: (1) a knowledge repository, (2) a network for election administration professionals and (3) opportunities for practitioners to develop their knowledge and receive accreditation. It is on this third element of the ACE Electoral Knowledge Network mandate that the University of Calgary has focused.

From the University’s perspective, the ACE Electoral Knowledge Network provided a number of important advantages. Like many universities worldwide, the University of Calgary (a relatively large institution with approximately 28,000 full-time students and a full complement of degree offerings, including the PhD) has identified a set of strategic goals that include the desire to increase its international presence and grow its international partnerships. The University also wants to diversify and expand its student base to enable a greater variety of program offerings, including a greater range of programs called “post-degree continuous learning.” Such initiatives include professional development programs that may provide “laddering credentials” ranging from certificates to diplomas to degrees. The fact that the University sought these institutional changes in academic programming meant that it was more open to developing initiatives that respond to the needs of professional communities.

The Department of Political Science at the University proposed the development of a training program for professionals in election administration, tied to the ACE Electoral Knowledge Network. It was evident that the proposal met a number of key University strategic priorities, and it was endorsed by the University’s senior officials. We are now at the important stage of taking this initiative from idea to reality. Its success will be dependent upon four key factors: partnerships, quality, funding and needs.

Keys to Success

Whether such a training program is developed at the University of Calgary or elsewhere, its success will be critically affected by the character of the partnerships that are developed. The ACE Electoral Knowledge Network partnership brings a number of important organizations on board, but there is also the need to ensure a diversity of faculty who can offer actual programming. While the University of Calgary has significant strength in areas relating to election studies, no single university department will have the requisite breadth of expertise to cover all themes included in the ACE Electoral Knowledge Network. Therefore, partnerships among universities interested in engaging in this area of professional training will be important.

Quality is the hallmark of university programming generally, and it is in recognition of universities’ mandate to provide quality educational programming that the ACE Electoral Knowledge Network has sought to engage university partners in delivering on this aspect of its goals. The curriculum must be relevant and timely, and the instructors must bring a combination of practitioner know-how, scholarly objectivity and teaching strength. Our ability to recruit partners who bring such qualities to the educational programming will lead to a successful initiative.

From the outset, we expect such a professional development/accreditation program in election administration to enroll both participants from countries with extensive electoral experience and others from countries with less experience. We also expect that some participants will come from institutions with little capacity to pay for the professional development of their senior staff. Therefore, sources of funding must be secured to ensure that, when the curriculum is ready, those who are interested will have the ability to actually attend the program.

Lastly, a successful program must respond to the needs of the election administration community. The programming should be intensive and offered in modules of short duration—perhaps in blocks of 7 to 10 days—so that officials can attend while continuing to serve in their positions. It will be styled on an executive development program, in which small groups focus on case study analysis, which enables learning across cultures and across various electoral design options.

At this stage of the evolution of this program, we do not have all of the answers. But we see in this initiative a number of elements that contribute to our mission and mandate, and real opportunities to serve a professional community. I would be very pleased to hear from readers who share these interests and who may wish to discuss opportunities for partnership.

Keith Archer is a professor of political science at the University of Calgary and director of research at the Banff Centre in Banff, Alberta, Canada ([email protected]).