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Individuals sharing their skills and knowledge through actions intended to improve communities, states, nations, the world, and themselves.

2021 Civic Engagement Showcase Recording

 

Civic Advocacy Network

 TitleDescription
2023 Civic Advocacy Network Award ApplicationCompleted Applications are due to KSDE by May 12, 2023.
Civic Advocacy Network Award One PagerRevised 08/28/17
Civic Advocacy Network Information GuideThis document provides educators with information about the Civic Advocacy Network Award application, evidence, process, and criteria for the award.

Congratulations to the nine 2020 Civic Advocacy Network (CAN) award winners and the three schools identified as having promising civic engagement practices in place in their schools! 

The 2020 CAN award winners are:

  • Bernadine Sitts Intermediate, Garden City USD 457
  • Derby North Middle School, Derby USD 260
  • Fredonia Jr./Sr. High School, Fredonia USD 484
  • Halstead High School, Halstead USD 440
  • Lakeside Elementary School, Pittsburg USD 250
  • Maize High School, Maize USD 266
  • North Fairview Elementary School, Seaman USD 345
  • Prairie Ridge Elementary School, De Soto USD 232
  • Winfield High School, Winfield USD 465

They join the 2019 CAN award winners in the Civic Advocacy Network:

  • Whittier Elementary, Winfield USD 465
  • North Lyon County Elementary School, North Lyon Co. USD 251
  • Seaman High School, Seaman USD 345
  • Shawnee Mission Northwest High School, Shawnee Mission USD 512
  • South Barber High School, South Barber USD 255
  • Swaney Elementary School, Derby USD 260
  • Santa Fe Trail Middle School, Olathe USD 233

Schools receiving the 2020 Promising Practice Awards are:

  • Atchison Co. Jr./Sr. High School, Atchison Co. Community USD 377
  • Derby High School, Derby USD 260
  • Winfield Middle School, Winfield USD 465

Educator Resources for Civic Engagement

 TitleDescription
10 Mostly Instructional Practices To Improve Civic Engagement in Any ClassroomThis document provides a list practices that can be used in any classroom regardless of grade or discipline that will improve the civic engagement of their students. Each practice has links to associated articles or resources about the practice.
Civic Engagement General ResourcesUpdated 11/27/2017. This is a list of some of the many resources available to help supplement the civic engagement work you are already doing in your buildings and districts.
Civic Engagement PresentationThis presentation is about the need for improving civic engagement in our students and the Civic Advocacy Network Award program, and outlines the Civic Advocacy Network program and the Six Proven Practices for Civic Learning.
Civic Engagement Tree VisualThis PDF is intended to assist districts in beginning to build an integrated curriculum around civic engagement.
Civil Discourse in the ClassroomThis resource is helpful in providing explicit instruction on how to teach students to participate in successful civil discourse in the classroom and life. Lessons are not subject specific but focus on the manner in which we talk about critical issues.
Facilitating Civil Discourse in the ClassroomThis document provides some suggestions about how best to facilitate civil discourse in your classroom.
Fostering Civil DiscourseThis resources gives teachers suggestions about how they might make their classrooms a safe and productive place to have critical conversations about today's issues.
Generation CitizenGeneration Citizen provides an excellent framework for student participation in civic engagement in the community.
Kansans Can Civic Engagement Fact SheetA fact sheet describing the Kansas State Department of Education's initiative around civic engagement. It includes a definition of civic engagement and a description of what good civic engagement education would include.
NCSS Position Paper: Revitalizing Civic Learning in Our SchoolsThis is the National Council for the Social Studies' (NCSS) position paper on improving civic learning in schools.
Participatory Budgeting in Schools GuideThis PDF lays out a plan for implementing participatory budgeting in your school. Please feel free to amend the timeline and the dollar amounts. This is a great way to improve the civic engagement of your students.
Six Proven Practices for Effective Civic LearningThe purpose of this guidebook is to serve as a resource—a what’s next?—for teachers, administrators, policymakers, and other education leaders who want to put these practices in place but are not sure how to begin.

Civic Engagement Lead
Dr. Jessica Dorsey, Executive Director, Kansas Volunteer Commission
(785) 296-3163
jdorsey@ksde.org

Deputy Commissioner
Division of Learning Services

Dr. Ben Proctor
(785) 296-2303
bproctor@ksde.org

Director
Career, Standards and Assessment

Beth Fultz
(785) 296-3142
bfultz@ksde.org

Assistant Director
Career and Technical Education

Natalie D. Clark
(785) 296-4351
​ndclark@ksde.org

Assistant Director
Curricular Standards

Dr. David Fernkopf
(785) 296-8447
dfernkopf@ksde.org

Assistant Director
Assessment

Julie Ewing
(785) 296-2325
jewing@ksde.org

Assistant Director
Kansas Volunteer Commission

Dr. Jessica Dorsey
(785) 296-3163
jdorsey@ksde.org

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