Other Civics Organizations

Below are links to civics organizations where educators can find even more resources and information to assist in their teaching practice.

Center for Civic Education

The founders of We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution program, along with Project Citizen and multiple other curriculum and civics engagement programs, you can find past We the People questions, information about the programs, and other resources here.

 

CIRCLE

The Center for Information & Research on Civics Learning and Engagement is the premiere source of civics research in the United States. It’s research focuses on young people, especially those marginalized and disadvantaged. You can find multiple sets of data, graphs, and research on civic life in America you can use in your classroom or your own research, along with all the research that is going out of the CIRCLE center in Tufts University.

 

Civil Rights Civics Institute

The American Bar Association has created this resource to educate both lawyers and the public about related law and policy so everyone can participate more effectively in our democracy. The Civil Rights Civics Institute consists of short, educational video and written responses answering student-generated questions on a wide range of civil rights related civics topics.

Constitutional Rights Foundation

Established several decades ago and located in Southern California, CRF provides multiple professional development opportunities and student programming including multiple law-related programs. They organize student competitions and work to grow student civic participation through programs such as CityWorks, CityYouth, and Teaching American History.

 

Educating for American Democracy

The EAD initiative demonstrates that an ideologically, demographically, and professionally diverse group can agree about history and civics content, as well as pedagogy. Their roadmap encourages teachers to choose pedagogically sound and tested practices to engage their students in civics education.

Facing History and Ourselves

With a mission of engaging students of diverse backgrounds in an examination of racism, prejudice, and antisemitism in order to promote the development of a more humane and informed citizenry,” Facing History and Ourselves provides educators with rich resources, materials, and professional development to enhance their knowledge and teaching practices around communicating history to students.

 

iCivics

Founded by retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, iCivics is a free online platform that engages students and provides teachers with free resources for their classroom.

 

Learning for Justice

Learning for Justice is the premier organization for educators to find resources on reducing prejudice and supporting equitable education experiences for their students. Their resources, ideas, strategies, and research can support teaching in a social studies subject areas, but especially in Civics.

 

Mikva Challenge

Mikva Challenge is a non-partisan empowerment program that envisions a just and equitable society for all citizens. They focus on reaching out to under-sourced communities and support civic programs and opportunities, and provide resources for educators and community members.

 

National Archives

Looking for those primary documents and exhibits? This incredible depository of American archival documents, pictures, and other media provides teachers with a never-ending source of inspiration and ideas. Check out their collections on almost every topic you may be teaching, and they even have teaching guides and resources to help you use the archival items you find!

 

National Council for the Social Studies

NCSS is the premier national organization for Social Studies educators. Not only does it provide a national conference each year, but with your membership, you get regular publications and resources to help grow your professional and best practices. They are always looking for good writers as well, so it can be a great professional growth opportunity for you!

Oregon Council for the Social Studies

OCSS provides an annual Social Studies Conference for Oregon teachers and publishes the acclaimed Oregon Journal of Social Studies, where you can both submit and read peer-reviewed work from P-16 Oregon Social Sciences educators. Join OCSS to connect with colleagues and find fantastic Oregon-based civics resources!

 

Street Law

Started by law students in the 1970s, Street Law has grown into the premier provider of law-related education curriculum. It provides high quality professional development, curriculum resources, and programs to bring education about the law and the justice system into your classroom. Civics Learning Project provides a Street Law program through Lewis & Clark Law School and we encourage you to check it out!