About
CIVICS INITIATIVE
The Civics Initiative aims to foster a deeper understanding of civic life through interdisciplinary education and dialogue.. This work has been generously supported by the Teagle Foundation.
MISSION & VISION
The core of the Civics Initiative is a course, LSP 275, which reimagines civics education by centering lived experience, interdisciplinary inquiry, and the social contract. Through reflective dialogue, analysis of foundational texts, and exposure to diverse perspectives, this course empowers students to understand their role in civic life and to engage constructively across ideological differences. We aim to create classroom spaces where students and educators co-learn, challenge assumptions, and work toward a more equitable and connected society.
CURRICULUM
LSP 275 fosters connection by encouraging participants to engage with diverse perspectives and share their own stories. Through dialogue, group activities, and community-focused projects, students build relationships across differences and explore how personal and collective experiences shape public life. These connections extend beyond the classroom, helping teachers and students better understand their role in a shared democracy.
CONNECTION
LSP 275 fosters connection by encouraging participants to engage with diverse perspectives and share their own stories. Through dialogue, group activities, and community-focused projects, they can build relationships across differences and explore how personal and collective experiences shape public life. These connections extend beyond the classroom, helping teachers and students better understand their role in a shared democracy.
WHO TEACHES CIVICS
Faculty from across the university, in nine out of our 10 colleges, teach a version of civics that blends our foundational focus with their own disciplinary expertise.
LEARNING CIVICS, LIVING DEMOCRACY
By creating a classroom environment that fosters productive and honest discussions, both students and educators can learn from one another regarding how our interactions with politics can be vastly different and shape the way we function day-to-day. In our highly polarized political climate, we believe it is essential to create a curriculum that assists students in their understanding of civics, the role of the government, the role of residents and citizens, and how our individual experience shapes how we interact with these realities.
First Session 2022
In Fall 2022, Professor Molly Andolina piloted the first LSP 275 course with a small group of students. Class discussions focused on sharing and analyzing lived civic experiences across different backgrounds. This pilot laid the foundation for fostering open-minded, inclusive civic dialogue in the classroom.
- Participants engaged with primary texts from Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau and our founding documents.
- We also explored more contemporary examples of the social contract, such as President Lyndon Johnson’s Commencement Address at the University of Michigan and the Seneca Falls Resolution.
- Prof. Andolina introduced alternative perspectives for students to recognize diverse civic experiences and to practice their skills of active listening.