National Civic Review articles from June 2005

National Civic Review archives from June 2005

Note from the editor.(INTRODUCTION)
June 22, 2005... One of the great mysteries of American politics is why so few people actually vote, especially the young. In 1972, when eighteen-year-olds were given the franchise, only 52 percent of the eighteen-to-twenty-four age bracket showed up at the...

A campus view: civic engagement and the higher education community.
June 22, 2005... In recent years, there have been a variety of efforts to define, develop, and implement civic engagement programs in institutions of higher education. As happens with most changes in curriculum and new programs, results are often mixed or still...

Project Pericles: a daring work-in-progress.
June 22, 2005... Project Pericles is a daring work-in-progress that addresses a major concern of our democratic society--the political malaise of our youth--by promoting and facilitating transformation of higher education in the United States. By way of...

Cracking the atom of civic power.
June 22, 2005... Asked why he robbed banks, Willie Sutton said, "Because that's where the money is." Like Sutton perhaps, higher education may be short of money, but it is not short of brain and brawn. There is no better place to look for the human resources...

Engaging communities: the campus compact model.
June 22, 2005... In the 1980s, the common assessment of American college students was a harsh one: social observers deemed them materialistic, self-absorbed, and lacking in any sense of civic responsibility. The media portrayed these Gen X college students as...

An interview with Stanley Fish: aiming low in the Ivory Tower.(Interview)
June 22, 2005... In a commencement address at Temple University last year, educator Stanley Fish alluded to the oft-quoted words of John E Kennedy, but not for the reason you might expect. "The world outside the halls of ivy should not look at us and demand,...

A false dichotomy for higher education: educating citizens vs. educating technicians.
June 22, 2005... Writing in the Chronicle of Higher Education last year, Stanley Fish, former dean of the College of Liberal Arts of the University of Illinois-Chicago, admonished the academy to "aim low" (see the interview in this issue of NCR). He urged...

Civic engagement: the Omaha experience: for the sake of readability, this essay was written as if Mayor Fahey were the sole author.
June 22, 2005... If civic engagement means the university community and city government strive for respectful, long-term, and mutually beneficial working associations, then Omaha is fortunate to have many potential partners who are willing and qualified. More...

Enlightened self-interest.
June 22, 2005... In the words of John Adams, "the end of study is to make you a good man [or woman] and a useful citizen." (1) Good advice, but advice that too many educators heed only in part. All too often, college and university officials and faculty...

Quo vadis: what can students do for American cities?
June 22, 2005... The experience of service learning can be deeply rewarding, whether the service rendered is voluntary or a required part of the curriculum; whether it is part-time or full-time (as it is in most programs of national service); whether it takes...

Leveling the playing field with public campaign financing systems.
June 22, 2005... Regulating campaign spending has been compared to squeezing a balloon. When one part of the balloon is squeezed, the air rushes to another part. In the case of campaign finance, when one form of contribution is restricted, the money rushes to...

Comprehensive community indicators systems.
June 22, 2005... In the past, government agencies and other groups have used various indicators to track and report on trends within their own particular silo of responsibility. Examples are economic indexes commonly quoted in the news; changes in health...

CitiStat: performance measurement with attitude.
June 22, 2005... The public sector has been flirting with performance measurement since the 1930s, but this wannabe management tool may be assuming a much higher profile than in the past with a new iteration known as CitiStat. This newest version of performance...

Web dialogues facilitate citizen-lawmaker communication in California.(TRENDS IN CIVIC ENGAGEMENT)
June 22, 2005... At a time when many citizens have lost interest in politics and policy making, lawmakers in California are exploring ways of using online dialogues to engage citizens in the legislative process. On the basis of two previous dialogues with...