Civic Learning Week is March 11th to 15th!

This $10,000 award recognizes a civics, U.S. government, or history teacher who has demonstrated courage and excellence in equity-rooted civic education. Deadline is June 1st.

Nominate a teacher for The Darcy E. Richie Teacher Courage Award

David Brown

Partner, Brunswick Group

David Brown, Chair

Jane-Lo

Associate Professor of Teacher Education, Michigan State University

Jane Lo

Segneri-Matt

Executive Director of the Harvard Innovation Labs

Matthew Segneri, Vice-Chair

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Director of Learning and Impact, NAACP

Marjorie Innocent

Ishrat Jahan

Student, New York University

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Student, Middlesex Community College

Fallon Manyika

Joe-McGeehin

Core Management, Bridgewater Associates

Joe McGeehin

Hanna-Rodriguez-Farrar

Chief of Staff to President Brian W. Casey, Colgate University

Hanna Rodriguez-Farrar, Ph.D, Ed.D

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Student, The University of Oklahoma

Savannah Slayton

Jamie Van Leeuwen Photo

Global Livingston Institute, JVL Consulting

Jamie Van Leeuwen

Wendy Haines

Partner, Portfolio Investments at New Profit Inc.

Wendy Lee Haines

Charlie Bullock

Managing Director, Stifel Financial

Charles “Charlie” Bullock

Nicole Wright

Executive Director and Assistant General Counsel at JPMorgan Chase

Mary-Vascellaro

Board Member Emerita

Mary Vascellaro

Member Emeritus

Ed Cohen

Learn More

2024 EOY Pop-Up Graphic

The Future in Focus: Youth Leading Now

Generation Citizen

Committed to amplifying the voices of young people in our democracy

Who We Are

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In collaboration with each local Executive Director, the Associate Boards serve to strategically raise the profile of Generation Citizen through networking events, fundraising opportunities, and more.

of Generation Citizen students have the knowledge to create a plan to address a problem

Civics Knowledge

of Generation Citizen students developed civics skills to engage in democracy

Civic Motivation

of Generation Citizen students believe they can make a difference in their communities

Civics Confidence

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View the Research Study

View the PBL Study

Exposure to Generation Citizen was associated with increased overall academic engagement. Student participation in non-GC classes increased after completing a GC class.

Generation Citizen’s curriculum is project based learning (PBL).
In a recent study, PBL curriculum led to gains in social studies and informational reading. Students using the curriculum experienced a 63% gain in social studies learning, translating to five to six months of increased learning.
The approach also resulted in a 23% gain in informational reading, or an additional two months of learning for the year.

Teachers gain both content and pedagogical competencies as they learn how to facilitate community-based civics in their classrooms–skills that transfer to all of their classrooms.

Program data including student and teacher evaluations, classroom observations, and focus groups.

Research studies derived from engagement with external institutions provide valuable data by which to measure progress.

Aanchal Dhar

Encore.org

Debbie Chang

Community Member

Deirdre Cohen

VISA, SVP - Global Head of Acceptance Client Services

Derick McGee

Head of Executive Thought Leadership, Americas Mastercard

Greg Bybee

Avela, CEO; Social Entrepreneur

Joey King

Field Representative for CA Senator Lena Gonzalez - Thirty Third District

Kavita Shah

East Bay Regional Park District

Quinn Schwab

Bain & Company

Matt Jose

(Co-Chair), MetroWest

Rachel Black

(Co-Chair), Education Resource Strategies

Adam Robitaille

Farmer's Insurance

Alana Hill

Bottom Line

Alex Quinn

William Blair

Becca Kornfeld

Sanofi Specialty Care

Brenda Santos

Rhode Island College

Cara McCluskey

Mass General Brigham

Celina Andrade

Adler Pollock & Sheehan P.C.

Dan McCarthy

National Recreation & Park Association

Hanno Alden

JP Morgan Chase

Harry Shipps

90 West LLC

Jaya Khetarpal

U.S. House of Representatives

Jessica Lander

Lowell High School

Jessica Schrank

Microsoft

Kayla Mottola

Tripadvisor + Tripadvisor Foundation

Laurel Bliss

Education Resource Strategies

Sidney Li

Charlesbank Capital Partners

Stephanie Fernandez

St. Anselm College

Sydney Menzin

Brown University

Tom Kerr-Vanderslide

Office of Mayor Smiley

Wylie Chang

Aarati Cohly

(Chair), Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania

Annie Roome

Tusk Strategies

Devin Adams

WARBEVCO

Karin Campbell

Tony's Chocolonely

Caroline Jureller

Pricewaterhouse Coopers

Justin Flynn

Harvard Kennedy School

Matthew Jong

Sarah Chen

Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP

Sydney Munro

LionTree

Tyler Rice

Digital Wellness Institute

Uggi Lee

Amy Janes

([Oklahoma] Chair), Fanology

Andy Moore

University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center

Bonnie Blumert

Oklahoma County Assistant Public Defender

Dalton Funkhouser

St. Anthony Foundation

Hanna Bigbee

OU Student, Student Alumni

Kendra Whitman

OKCPS Teacher

Lillian Kivel

Minerva Schools

Madison Melon-McLawhorn

Marsha Funk

Community Volunteer

Patti Hixon

([Texas] Chair), Buie & Co.

Ben Bade

Dell EMC

Derek Puerta

Dev Sheth

Hideaway Report

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They work in collaboration with Executive Directors to raise the profile of each Generation Citizen program within the area it serves, thereby ensuring a strong community of supporters while driving local fundraising strategy.

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Learn More About Our Programs

mission

Students from Oklahoma identified drug abuse and the opioid crisis as an issue in their community. They collaborated with their State Representative to write a bill that would create a pilot program for inpatient drug and alcohol rehabilitation for individuals living below the federal poverty line. Generation Citizen students advocated for the bill to be introduced and then coordinated a campaign in favor of the bill that mobilized their peers and the broader community.

We envision a world in which young people are at the forefront of creating a more just, participatory, and inclusive country.

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Through community-based civic education, legislative advocacy and coalition building, and youth leadership development, we teach young people how to have a voice and become active citizens in their communities.

The How

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We are transforming how civics is taught by providing equity-rooted, community-based civics education, which helps students understand exactly how governments function and how they can make a difference in the system.

The What

According to the Harvard Institute of Politics 2022 Youth Poll, youth confidence in the efficacy of voting and civic involvement is dropping:

The percentage of youth agreeing that “political involvement rarely has any tangible results”:

Agreement that “politics today are no longer able to meet the challenges our country is facing”:

Our democracy is in trouble.

The American political and economic system was designed to privilege, include, and prioritize the power and well-being of certain groups over others resulting in inequitable representation and policies that disadvantage communities of color and low-income communities.

Our democracy is not equitable.

Resources are not distributed equitably. Students from under-resourced schools are less likely to have access to high-quality, community-based civics education and social and emotional learning programs that help facilitate their academic success and long-term civic participation.

Our education system is not equitable.

Civics education varies significantly by state from no civic requirements to requiring a Civic Seal to graduate.

Our country spends just five cents in federal dollars per student per year on civics education compared to $54 per student on STEM.

Civics education is underfunded.

Leadership

Our Mission

The Team

The youth of our nation are experiencing the same hyperpolarization and loss of trust that adults are, and have the most to lose if our democracy falters.
Generation Citizen offers tools for the rising generation to build civic skills and make America the inclusive multi-racial democracy that we need.

Find Out More

Generation Citizen began in 2008 as a student project at Brown University, and is a testament to the power of young people when given the opportunity create change.

The students wanted to address a weakening of democratic spirit among young people, and started a collaboration with local classrooms to do community-based civics.

Today, Generation Citizen serves more than 25,000 students a year in more than 150 schools across eight states and we lead advocacy efforts for legislation prioritizing equitable civic education, and foster collaboration through youth leadership development.

Solutions are only possible when we work together.

GC&#8217;s core values are essential to realizing its vision and define the spirit of the organization. We expect all staff and stakeholders to uphold these values in every aspect of our work.