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Center Partners With Indianapolis Public Schools To Help Students Learn About Congress, Citizenship
September 15, 2009, BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Students in the Indianapolis schools are receiving new tools to help them learn about Congress and citizenship, thanks to an innovative partnership to promote civic education formed by the Center on Congress, Rolls-Royce North America, and the Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS).
Rolls-Royce provided resources to supply social studies classes with copies of three of the Center's most popular educational booklets — Understanding Congress: A Citizen's Guide; Making Your Voice Heard: How To Work With Congress; and Your Ideas Count: Representative Democracy and You.
The cooperative venture was celebrated at an Aug. 31 assembly at Indianapolis' Shortridge Magnet High School for Law & Public Policy, hosted by the school's principal, Brandon Cosby. "These tools will engage students across the [IPS] district in the democratic process," Cosby said. "These resources will be a perfect fit for our student body, which undoubtedly includes a number of future policymakers."
The event drew an impressive roster of leaders in education, politics, and business. Participants in the program included Dr. Eugene White, Superintendent of IPS, which is the largest school system in Indiana, teaching approximately 34,000 students; U.S. Rep. Andre Carson (D-Ind. 7th); and Rolls-Royce North America Senior Vice President Edward A. Pease, a former U.S. Representative who is on the Board of Advisors of the Center on Congress.
In videotaped remarks, Center Director Lee Hamilton hailed the occasion as a "landmark event in our quest to reach a larger audience with our materials to increase knowledge of Congress and teach the skills of responsible citizenship.
"Teaching young people about Congress and encouraging them to get involved in politics and community service has been a passion of mine for a long time — during my 34 years in Congress, and since 1999 as head of the Center on Congress," Hamilton said. "If we fail to educate our children about our history and our system of representative government, we miss an opportunity to enrich their lives, and we miss an opportunity to enrich our country through their involvement."
Also on the event program was Alene Smith, Director of the Social Studies program at Shortridge, who is using the booklets in her classes and encouraging other IPS teachers to do the same.
On hand to show their support for the initiative were Indiana state Sen. Jean D. Breaux (D-District 34), and three state House members — Rep. Gregory W. Porter (D-District 96), who chairs the House Education Committee (and is a graduate of Shortridge);Rep. Jeb Bardon (D-District 25); and Rep. Phillip D. Hinkle (R-District 92). Also attending was Nancy Papas of the Indiana State Teachers Association, which has worked with the Center on other civic education projects and helped forge this partnership.