Ready to play the system? You're not just a student; you're a powerful stakeholder, and it's time to learn how to move the levers of government! 

This series of three policy projects dives into the real-world operations of the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches. You will directly engage with all three branches—commenting on proposed rules, lobbying Congress, and visting live courtrooms—to see how policy is truly made. By the end, you'll master how each branch competes, cooperates, and clashes, and how you can effectively shape policy outcomes.

Policy Project: Judicial Reflection

Students will visit local federal and state courts to see the judicial system in action. Afterward, they’ll write a one-page reflection comparing district vs. appellate courts and federal vs. state courts, while connecting their observations to AP Gov concepts like judicial review, federalism, and separation of powers. This project helps students link classroom learning to real-world experiences as stakeholders in the judicial branch.

Policy Project: Legislative  

Students will explore Congress in action by selecting a trending bill from GovTrack and researching its policy debates. They will write a 2–3 page report summarizing the bill, presenting arguments for and against it, making a policy recommendation, and predicting how their member of Congress and each chamber will act. Finally, students will email their representative with their recommendation. This project helps students connect AP Gov concepts like enumerated powers, federalism, and the role of public opinion to the real work of the legislative branch.

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Policy Project: Executive   

Students will explore the Executive Branch in action by selecting a trending rule from Regulations.gov and researching its policy debates. They will write a 2–3 page report summarizing the rule, presenting arguments for and against it, making a policy recommendation, and predicting the likelihood of the rule being passed. Finally, students will post their actual public comment on the rule. This project helps students connect AP Gov concepts like bureaucracy, public opinion, and the administrative state to the real work of the executive branch.

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