SHAWNEE HIGH SCHOOL RECOGNIZED AS DEMOCRACY SCHOOLS

Post date: Sep 18, 2014 1:57:28 PM

Preparing Young People For Civic Life

Carbondale, September 16, 2014— The Illinois Civic Mission Coalition has recognized Shawnee High School District #84 (www.shawneedistrict84.com) in Wolf Lake as an Illinois Democracy School. Democracy Schools are recognized for providing students with authentic experiences in the rights, responsibilities and tensions inherent in living in a constitutional democracy. Through these experiences, participating schools strive to equip students with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary for informed, effective engagement in our democracy.

Since 2006, 31 Illinois high schools have successfully completed a school-wide civic assessment and have been subsequently recognized as Democracy Schools. Click here for the complete list of schools.

Shawnee High School will receive a stipend from the Robert R. McCormick Foundation { www.McCormickFoundation.org}, which convenes the Coalition, to invest in high quality civic learning initiatives, as well as a banner for public display. In addition, Shawnee High School will receive a certificate signed by the Chairman of the Illinois State Board of Education, Gery Chico, the Chief Justice of the Illinois Supreme Court, Thomas L. Kilbride, and the school’s state legislators.

"Our Democracy School Team is extremely honored to be recognized for our commitment to civics. Though the levee project definitely is a big component of our civics curriculum, students also engage in multiple service projects throughout the year in Beta Club, FFA, science classes, English classes, & the list goes on. The stipend will help the students and their teachers continue to pursue these endeavors aimed at improving the school and the community," stated team leader and social science teacher Jamie Nash-Mayberry.

During the application process, the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute provided a stipend to Shawnee High School to support the Democracy School Application Team and civic learning projects. The Paul Simon Public Policy Institute has collaborated with the McCormick Foundation to train and support Democracy Schools in southern Illinois. Shawnee High School is the second school in Southern Illinois to be awarded this honor.

“Shawnee is a good example of how a small, rural school district can have a big impact on their community through civic engagement,” said David Yepsen, director of the Institute. “The students have worked hard with their instructor, Jamie Nash-Mayberry to call attention to the poor condition of river levees. They’ve learned how the political process works and have participated in it for the betterment of their communities. They are a role model for other small, rural districts.”

“I’m also excited the Democracy Schools project is working to pay attention to smaller school, which often feel overlooked in Illinois,” Yepsen said.

Illinois Democracy Schools embrace their mission to provide high quality civic learning opportunities for all students. Their leadership emphasizes civic learning through development of professional faculty and staff capacity, and proven civic learning practices are woven throughout the formal curriculum. Democracy Schools foster a school climate that nurtures and models civic dispositions and build reciprocal relationships within the surrounding community.

Democracy Schools provide numerous opportunities for students to participate in the democratic process through a range of classes and clubs. From class discussion on current issues and democratic simulations to extracurricular and service learning opportunities, students are able to experience first-hand the critical role they can play in shaping their government and society.

On September 17 at 10:30 a.m. at the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, Jamie Nash-Mayberry and thirteen of Shawnee High School’s students will be available to answer media questions about the importance of becoming a Democracy School, the projects that led the school to receive the Democracy School recognition, and their future plans.

About the Robert R. McCormick Foundation

The Robert R. McCormick Foundation is committed to fostering communities of educated, informed and engaged citizens. Through philanthropic programs, Cantigny Park and museums, the Foundation helps develop citizen leaders and works to make life better in our communities. The Foundation was established as a charitable trust in 1955, upon the death of Colonel Robert R. McCormick, the longtime editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune. The McCormick Foundation is one of the nation's largest foundations, with more than $1 billion in assets. To learn more about the McCormick Foundation visit McCormickFoundation.org, follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/McCormick_Fdn, or like us on Facebook at facebook.com/McCormickFoundation.

About the Illinois Civic Mission Coalition

The Illinois Civic Mission Coalition is a broad non-partisan consortium including educators, administrators, students, universities, funders, elected officials, policymakers and representatives from the private and non-profit sectors. Formed in 2004 by the Constitutional Rights Foundation Chicago, the Illinois Coalition is part of the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools, a national initiative to restore a core purpose of education to prepare America’s youngest citizens to be informed and active participants in our democracy. The Robert R. McCormick Foundation has convened the Coalition since 2010. For more information, please visit www.McCormickFoundation.org/DemocracySchools.

Contact:

Jamie Nash-Mayberry, Social Science Teacher

jnash25@gmail.com

6187130475