RHODE ISLAND YOUTH LEADERS CALL FOR CIVIC EDUCATION FUNDING
Abby Lee, an ARISE Youth Leader and RICLC Youth Voice Fellow, wrote the following blog post for RICLC on the need for civic education funding.
In 2022, I served as a research fellow on a report assessing the state of civic education in Rhode Island. We found that only 12% of Rhode Islanders who attend a public or middle school “definitely could” explain the rights and responsibilities of U.S. citizens. As a high schooler myself, I only recently became part of this 12%. Even though I have the privilege of attending a private high school with a challenging curriculum, by the age of 17, I still failed to identify what “civic education” meant. The failure of Rhode Island schools to create an educated citizenry is unacceptable: students should not have to look outside of their own schools to receive an education in civics.
Seeking to learn more, my opportunity came from the Rhode Island Civic Learning Coalition (RICLC): a multigenerational, multiethnic group that condemns the insufficiencies of civic education curriculums within Rhode Island schools. The trust that the coalition placed in me—empowering me to facilitate coalition meetings, plan Civic Learning Week events, and write opinion pieces (such as this one!)—was instrumental in my growth as a civically involved citizen, helping me to identify my rights while entrusting me with the responsibility to lead.
ARISE with the Let RI Vote Coalition
Despite being a novel practice within our greater political landscape, local social justice organizations have already been using a youth-centered approach for years. In addition to the RICLC, I owe my civic education to the Alliance of Rhode Island Southeast Asians for Education (ARISE), a local non-profit that “combines leadership training with community organizing to mobilize Southeast Asian and other Rhode Island youth of color for educational justice.” This group, which stipends middle and high schoolers to attend political education workshops, facilitate community gatherings, and attend national conferences, declares itself to be “fueled by engaged and empowered young people.”
The future of youth in Rhode Island is bright, thanks to other organizations such as the Providence Youth Student Movement (PrYSM), the Center for Youth and Community Leadership in Education (CYCLE), the Providence Alliance for Student Safety (PASS), and the Providence Student Union (PSU), all of which have found success from their youth-centered focus. By trusting youth with the responsibility to lead, they help to represent our state’s youngest constituents while equipping them for a future as civically literate citizens.
Moreover, these groups understand that their youth’s time is valuable, compensating for this sacrifice in the form of stipends. The empathy that these organizations show towards youth is what makes them so special: teens feel supported in their rights, and in response, rise to the challenge, taking on new responsibilities to give back to the whole team. This model begs the question of how students can be expected to trust authority figures—whether it be teachers, parents, or even elected officials—if they do not feel trusted themselves. In order for youth to identify and embody their rights as citizens of the United States, they must be entrusted with the responsibility to do so.
While I am grateful for the opportunities that the Rhode Island Civic Learning Coalition has provided me, I should not have had to look outside of school to learn about civics. As a junior, I was privileged to have the time and resources to seek the group out, but many students—already laden with jobs, co-curriculars, or family responsibilities—do not have such luck. Upon joining the RICLC, I found a community that echoed my frustration: adults and teens alike were dissatisfied with the level of civic education being taught within public schools.
In an effort to combat these deficiencies, the coalition organized “Civic Learning Week,” a week of workshops and seminars that amplified youth voices and opened dialogue about the weaknesses in Rhode Island’s civics curriculum. During a discussion with local legislatures, Rhode Island Youth Civic Leader Athena Holloway voiced her frustration at this time taken away from youth: “There are youth who have been fighting this fight forever…and a lot of us are doing this work on our own, by ourselves. We’re going home after school…and writing testimonies, reaching out about what we can do.” She later continued, “There should be more of a connection from youth directly in schools to their legislators.”
In order to bridge this gap between youth and their government, civic education must have a mandated place within the curriculums of our public schools. Groups such as the RICLC and ARISE have been consistently supporting civic education. However, it is not the job of non-profits to make up for the shortcomings of our public education system. If we want to improve the quality of education statewide, we must have help from our elected officials and executive offices. As Holloway reminded, “We do want youth connections but we also don't want empty promises.”
Abby Lee at her High School graduation (2023)
Thanks to my experience with the RICLC and ARISE, I know that changing our education system is easier said than done. With teacher shortages, defunded schools, and delayed repercussions from the Covid-19 pandemic, change demands an incentive from the government. Last year, I had an appointment to present the data from our 2022 report to the Rhode Island Commissioner of Education, Angelica Infante Green, seeking an additional $1.5 million in funding towards civic curriculums. Unfortunately, the Commissioner ultimately could not be present. Deputy Commissioner Odom-Villella attended in her stead.
Given the continued call for real-world, hands-on civic learning opportunities for Rhode Island youth, we implore the Commissioner to review this data again. The State of Civic Education in Rhode Island Report emphasizes the great inequities in access to a civic education in our most diverse and low income communities. The continuation of these inequities to our educational system keeps the percentage of students who know their rights and responsibilities from growing. If we want the next generation to be informed, empowered citizens, change must be supported by leadership. We need adults to trust in adolescents, allocating money towards civic education in Rhode Island and cementing it as a permanent fixture of our public curriculums.
