current PROJECT
Wisconsin Civics Project Program Support
PARTICIPATING STAFF: Dr. Molly Garner Carroll, Dr. Annalee G. Good
The Wisconsin Civics Project is designed to implement a newly developed Civics-focused Scope and Sequence for K-12 social studies. This vision was articulated by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to foster excellence in civics. The agency’s goal is to support schools and educators with standards-aligned resources and tools that foster civic literacy and civic engagement for all learners. Beginning in summer 2022, DPI recruited teams of teachers with expertise in civics education to develop a civics-focused K-12 Scope and Sequence (released in October 2023). The Region 10 Comprehensive Center (R10CC) co-facilitated these work groups.
Subsequently, a cadre of 15 practicing teachers with expertise in civics education, called Civics Fellows, were selected to carry on the work developed by the teacher teams. These Civics Fellows are situated in each of Wisconsin’s 12 regional Cooperative Educational Service Agencies (CESAs), and they assist WI-DPI in sharing civics resources with classroom teachers statewide. This project provides teachers with concrete resources and lessons, curated by their peers, for integrating civics into a school day. The Civics Fellows are also supported through a participatory inquiry of their ongoing program roll out.
In July of 2023, Wisconsin was fortunate to receive $200,000 from Educating for American Democracy to support this civics work. The partners on that grant included the Cooperative Educational Service Agency #1, Department of Public Instruction, and Region 10 Comprehensive Center. The infusion of resources provided by this grant will strengthen connections with classroom teachers, who will build the capacity of diverse learners to understand civic literacy and engagement. The 2023–24 school year is the first year of this implementation for these resources, with all regions of the state having access to professional learning with regional elementary teachers on best practices in civics education and guiding implementation of the Scope and Sequence with follow-up support.
In the Media
Project Partners
- WI Department of Public Instruction
- WI Cooperative Educational Service Agency #1