Written by Jyrell Wynn, Correspondent

It is time for your voice to be heard through Turning Point USA!

Shelby Simmons, a senior majoring in political science,  became involved in the Turning Point USA after a field director contacted her to discuss more about organization. Simmons connected with how the organization ran and the supportive atmosphere towards students. She worked on registering the chapter at Valdosta State to get more students involved.

Their mission is to educate students about relevant information while promoting free market and capitalism. These issues include student loan debt, healthcare, freedom of speech, and anything else that deals with the freedom of students. Tabling and personal discussion allow students to discuss issues in a open dialogue.

Freedom of speech and student loan debts are some of the main issues at VSU.”We still have a free speech zone which limits the first amendment rights of students to a specific area on campus. We want students to be able to enjoy their full first amendment rights,” said Simmons. They are working on legislation with Student Government Association to get rid of the free speech zones and “give the freedom back to students”.  They also want to inform students on student loan debt  by informing them why they have so much debt and ways to prevent debt in the future.

You can come to their tables which happen at least once a week and give some information about yourself, so they can invite you to their next meeting or event. Join them on campus connect at Turning Point USA, Facebook at Turningpointusa@ValdostaState, or Twitter at TPUSA_VSU.  If you want to write, you can contribute to their website www.hypeline.org and share your opinion. They host several conferences such as a young Latino conference, young women’s leadership, and a high school activist conference. They fly students out to cities and educate them on how to be better leaders and get involved in communities.

With over 11,000 locations on college campuses across the United States, Turning Point USA is here to stay.  They will have a table about less government and more freedom in front of Odum library on March 9th.