The Independent View: MA Gov. Signed Civics Education Bill into Law

Two days after a Midterm Election that seems to have generated unprecedented Youth Turnout, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker Signed a groundbreaking, Bipartisan, Civics Education Bill into Law that will Ensure that Every Student in the Commonwealth receives an Action Civics Education.

This is extraordinary News for the Students and Communities of Massachusetts and positions the State as a leading National Model for States across the Country seeking to Revitalize Civics Education.

The New Law is the most robust Civics Bill that has Passed in the Country to date:

- Requires that All Public Schools Teach American History and Civics Education.

- Requires that All Public Schools provide Students at the Middle and High School Levels with Student-led Civics Projects.

- Establishes a Civics Project Trust Fund which will be used to create a Statewide Civic Infrastructure and provide Professional Development to Teachers, Prioritizing underserved Communities in “school districts with high concentrations of economically disadvantaged students.”

- Includes Provisions to Encourage Voter Registration and create Opportunities for other Vital Forms of Civic Engagement.

A Leading Role in every Step of the Process whose Lobbying efforts that brought the Bill to the Governor's Desk.

Legislative Leaders, including State Senator Harriette Chandler and Representative Linda Campbell, used their Stewardship and Commitment to Civics Education, joined Members of the Massachusetts Civic Learning Coalition and the Dozens of Middle and High School Students who worked the Bill.

We next have to Build on the Momentum in other States to ensure that every Student in the Country receives an effective Action Civics Education.

To this end, Generation Citizen is launching a Report today, Through an Action Civics Lens: Policy and Advocacy to Support Effective Civics Education Across the 50 States in tandem with their 2018-2019 Policy and Advocacy Agenda.

In a moment when the Historical De-Prioritization of Civics Education across the Country is being felt by all, and Policymakers and Constituents alike are calling for more, and better, Civics Education, we hope that the Passage of this Bill will be Celebrated widely.