Civic Learning in Higher Education: What Works?
April 2024 Measurement Working Group Convening Janett Cordovés , Senior Program Director, College Presidents Consortium, Jessica Sutter , Chief of Civic Learning Initiatives, Anna Gallos , Program Associate for Project Administration For the past two years, the Institute for Citizens & Scholars has spearheaded efforts to measure civic learning in higher education as part of the College Presidents for Civic Preparedness initiative. […]
Gen Z’s Take: Election Year Voter Roundtable
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THJ8jtMRef4 Jessica Sutter , Chief of Civic Learning Initiatives The Institute for Citizens & Scholars conducted a first-of-its-kind survey, The Civic Outlook of Young Adults in America, that sheds light on Gen Z’s civic knowledge, civic engagement, and commitment to democracy. What we found: Young people are dissatisfied with the political system and pessimistic about democracy. They lack critical […]
Raj Vinnakota on The Daily Bolster Podcast, Ep. 63
Rajiv Vinnakota , Presidenthttp://youtube.com/watch?v=s2OEUF0Jg3o Citizens & Scholars President Rajiv Vinnakota was a guest on the The Daily Bolster podcast, which features conversations with experts providing insight for startup leaders scaling their businesses. The podcast is hosted by Matt Blumberg, Founder and CEO of Bolster who also serves on the Citizens & Scholars Board of Trustees. Raj and Matt’s discussion focused […]
Overcoming Polarization: Building Bridges in the College Classroom
Janett Cordovés , Senior Program Director, College Presidents Consortium Embarking on my professional journey, I’ve keenly observed pervasive cues and norms – particularly the avoidance of discussing religion and politics – that are symptomatic of the broader issues of polarization, tribalism, and divisiveness entrenched in American life and higher education. This in in stark contrast to […]
Reflections from Civic Learning Week
Jessica Sutter , Chief of Civic Learning Initiatives Project Citizen Conference I was delighted to participate in in the Project Citizen Research Program Conference at Georgetown University. I facilitated a panel entitled, “What is Civic engagement?” featuring three graduate students and one undergraduate working with the Civic Education Research Lab, led by Professor Diana Owen. While my panel was […]
Difficult Conversations in the College Classroom Webinar
In March, the Institute for Citizens & Scholars hosted an intergenerational panel of Fellows for a virtual conversation on how to promote active listening, continuous learning, and dialogue across difference in the college classroom. Moderated by Aukeem Ballard, 2011 WW-Rockefeller Brothers Fund Fellow and Ph.D. candidate in the UC-Berkeley School of Education, the discussion featured […]
Colleges Must Do More to Help Students Manage Conflict and Have Civil Debate
Jonathan Koppell , President, Montclair State University In a U.S. News & World Report op-ed, Montclair State University President Jonathan Koppell talks about why he joined College Presidents for Civic Preparedness and how higher ed must take the lead in preparing students with the interpersonal skills necessary for civil discourse and civic engagement. “…I joined College Presidents for Civic Preparedness, an initiative […]
Civic Education Must be Made Priority for Young People, Panel Says
Crossposted with written permission from Wesleyan University. View the full article here. There are 68 million young people between the ages of 10 to 24 in the United States who will be entering the public sphere in the coming years, according to Rajiv Vinnakota, president of the Institute for Citizens and Scholars. This makes up nearly one-fifth […]
JMU Professor Lori Britt on Difficult Conversations in the Classroom
Meet Dr. Lori L. Britt, professor and Director of the School of Communication Studies at James Madison University, and Co-Director of JMU’s Institute for Constructive Advocacy & Dialogue. She’s an Institute for Citizens & Scholars 2023 Faculty Institute participant, part of College Presidents for Civic Preparedness. Designed as a “community of practice,” the Faculty Institute brings together […]
Mapping Civic Measurement: One Year Later
Anna Gallos , Program Officer, Campuswide Immersion “How do we know if we are making progress as a democracy?” That is a big question, and with countless—and often disparate—organizations and individuals working to improve our democracy, it can be challenging to understand what—if any—collective impact these efforts have. At Citizens & Scholars, we believe civic […]