How Can I Change My World?

Project Citizen provides the knowledge and protocols to inspire collaboration in your classroom to solve real world problems through public policy!

Project Citizen is a program for upper elementary, middle, secondary, post-secondary students, and youth organizations, that promotes competent and responsible participation in local and state government. Students work together to identify a problem, study policy issues related to the problem, develop a solution to the problem, and create an action plan for implementing their policy. In a culminating activity, students present in a simulated legislative hearing, demonstrating their knowledge and understanding of how public policy is formulated.

Your opportunity to be in the next cohort of teacher learners is here! Michigan is proud to announce we will host the third and final cohort of the Project Citizen Research Program.

What is the Project Citizen Research Project and how can I get involved?

Together with its partners, MCCE will be conducting a YEAR LONG supported professional learning FOR THE 2022-2023 academic year beginning July of 2022.

We are excited to announce that teams of interdisciplinary teachers are welcome to apply! If you have wanted to work and learn with teachers across disciplines, here is your chance. Learn from one another disciplinary expertise while working together to answer “what might we do with this knowledge to change the world”! Work together to create real-world collaboration, human centered design solutions through public policy.

Teachers are welcome to apply with teams of teachers from their own school across all disciplines. Commitment to solving real world problems through public policy crosses all disciplines including but not limited to:

Science
Math
Civics
Student Government
Speech and Debate
Art
ELA
Communications – Journalism, Marketing, Business, and More
Current Events
Project Based Learning
Inquiry Led Learning
Service Learning and Community Service
Design
More? Just ask!

Teachers from these ten states are eligible to apply:

Michigan
Ohio
Illinois
Wisconsin
Kentucky
Iowa
Missouri
Indiana
West Virginia
Minnesota

Participating will provide critical foundational learning to bring Project Citizen to life in the classroom. Participants will receive content from public policy experts; connections with local public policy makers; and proven and effective teaching strategies.

Apply Here!

Teachers Interested in the Full Year of Professional Learning - Apply Here!

Teachers Interested in Joining as Control Teachers - Apply Here!

What will I learn?

The Project Citizen Curriculum is anchored in public policy knowledge. Students discover the fluidity of public policy, who the change agents are, and how to appeal for meaningful positive community change.

Project Citizen is divided into instructional areas and four (4) presentation areas. Each area of study requires collaboration, consensus, and situational awareness. The areas of instruction include:

1. Identifying problems of concern to public policy. Related content, skills, and dispositions emphasized include:

Explore what public policy is and is not
Explore shared valued and controversy
Survey of issues facing community (with an emphasis on neighborhood, school, city, state)
Explore norms of collaboration including listening
Increase awareness and empathy
Focus on social and emotional learning
Constitutional and legal analysis
Listening, curiosity, and questioning

2. Selecting a problem or problems for the class to study. Related content, skills, and dispositions emphasized include:

Discussion of multiple viewpoints
Consensus building
Setting aside differences for common goals
Empathy
Media and information literacy
Structured iteration

3. Gathering information on the problem the class chooses to study. Related content, skills, and dispositions emphasized include:

Human centered design and design thinking
Journalism
Critical thinking
Data Literacy
Media and Information Literacy
Statistics, research, and design

4. Developing a portfolio to present the research. Related content, skills, and dispositions emphasized include:

Effective public policy and decision making
Iterative learning – taking feedback
Technology and communication
Assessing a portfolio
Listening, questioning, and curiosity

5. Presenting a portfolio in a simulated public hearing. Related content, skills, and dispositions emphasized include:

Advocacy
Performance
Public speaking
Persuasion
Listening, questioning, and curiosity

6. Reflecting on the experience. Related content, skills, and dispositions emphasized include:

Introspection
Learning through iteration
Norms of collaboration
Social and emotional learning
Artifact presentation, assessment, and proposal analysis

Teachers who attend and implement Project Citizen will receive:

A FREE classroom set of materials;
A stipend for completing the training upon completion of the professional learning, assessments, and participation in the showcase;
Exploration and practice with processes and protocols to address controversial topics in the classroom;
Ongoing instructional and curricular support;
SCECH credits; and
A great community of teachers;

Learn more about how to involve your class in Project Citizen, Contact Us.

Correlation of Project Citizen to Michigan’s Grade Level Content Expectations (PDF, 115 KB) (2007 edition – stay tuned for updated 2019 revisions)

Michigan Senate Resolution to Recognize the Valuable Contributions of Project Citizen to Education and the Development of Active Citizenship.