December 3, 2004: Headlines: USA Freedom Corps: NGO's: Seattle Post-Intelligencer: John Bridgeland, senior adviser to the citizenship conference, envisions "a unified nation of doers, givers and joiners."
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December 3, 2004: Headlines: USA Freedom Corps: NGO's: Seattle Post-Intelligencer: John Bridgeland, senior adviser to the citizenship conference, envisions "a unified nation of doers, givers and joiners."
John Bridgeland, senior adviser to the citizenship conference, envisions "a unified nation of doers, givers and joiners."
John Bridgeland, senior adviser to the citizenship conference, envisions "a unified nation of doers, givers and joiners."
New efforts push to make better citizens
By CONNIE CASS
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
WASHINGTON -- Two new efforts are afoot to encourage Americans to volunteer, vote, voice their opinions and otherwise live up to their civic duty.
The fledgling programs, intended to promote civic education and nudge citizens off the nation's sidelines, were announced by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and by the National Conference on Citizenship, at its annual meeting Friday.
John Bridgeland, senior adviser to the citizenship conference, envisions "a unified nation of doers, givers and joiners."
The Sept. 11, 2001, attacks shocked many people into civic participation, and the question is how to sustain that spirit, Bridgeland said. He was encouraged by increased turnout for the Nov. 2 election, he said, but is worried that lingering political divisions could dampen civic engagement.
The conference is creating a National Center on Citizenship intended to help more than a million people who work to boost civic involvement - teachers, members of community groups and foundations, and others - share their successes and apply for federal grant money. A National Advisory Board will work to come up with better ways to measure civic engagement.
The effort begins with a privately funded budget of about $225,000 and eventually will be housed in one or more universities, Bridgeland said.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting's initiative will help teach middle and high school students American history and civics.
It's too early in the planning to say how much it will cost, said CPB spokeswoman Ross Brown. The idea is to incorporate public television with other media, such as the Internet.
"They're hoping to reach kids wherever they think kids are learning. That might include schools, libraries, after-school programs, or at home," Brown said.
The nonprofit corporation, created by Congress, distributes federal money to public television and radio stations and for the production of programming.
The nonprofit National Conference on Citizenship was founded in 1946 to sustain the spirit of cooperation engendered by World War II and operates under a charter granted by Congress.
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Story Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; USA Freedom Corps; NGO's
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