Hemet USD's graduating seniors who meet the following criteria, may earn the State Seal of Civic Engagement on their High School diploma.
Student should be on track to graduate based on each student’s unique graduation plan (in alignment with state and local graduation requirements) .
Student content knowledge should demonstrate a competent understanding of United States and California constitutions; functions and governance of local governments; tribal government structures and organizations; the role of the citizen in a constitutional democracy; and democratic principles, concepts, and processes.
Qualification Options:
A 2.0 average in Social Science courses required for graduation credit: World History, U.S. History, American Government (ROTC 4), Economics
(or equivalent )
*Alessandro HS is earning credit, not “C” or better
Coursework Project(s):
Participate in at least ONE project over the course of the high school career that addresses real-world problems and requires students to identify and inquire into civic needs or problems that are meaningful to them, consider and discuss varied responses based on research, take informed action, and reflect on their efforts. Project/activities should enable students to respond to the self-reflection prompts for Criterion #4.
OR
Extra-Curricular Options:
Create or lead new initiatives or projects; alternatively, participate in activities that improve upon a pre-existing opportunity on campus or in the community independent of teacher oversight. Examples include active participation or leadership in an organization or activity (e.g., a club, community group, nonprofit, etc.) with the goal of addressing student/school/community problems/needs. Activities should enable students to respond to the self-reflection prompts for Criterion #4.
EVIDENCE
Student will document project/activities (Google Site, Slide presentation, video presentation, etc)
Parental/Guardian Consent Form
Students will need to have have Parental/Guardian consent to complete their project. Click HERE for the consent form.
Through self-reflection, the student will demonstrate civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions/inclinations acquired and how these met criteria #2 and #3 specifically. Self-reflection should articulate/describe the following:
1) INQUIRY:
What problem(s)/issue(s) are you trying to address through the civic engagement project(s)/activities? Why is this meaningful to you? How do/did you intend to make a positive difference in your immediate community (such as with one’s peers, class, school, neighborhood, city, etc.) or for a democratic idea (such as for equity and justice)?
2) INVESTIGATION:
What actions/activities did you take on? How did you investigate the root causes of the problem(s) using different lenses? What new insights did you gain?
3) DISCOURSE:
How did you engage with others to understand multiple perspectives? What were your conclusions? What additional insights did you gain?
4) INFORMED ACTION:
What informed action did you take on to build awareness of the issue(s) and/or your conclusion(s)? How did you engage with your community, institutional decision-makers, and/or governing entities (including other avenues to influence for change, such as protests, consumer boycotting, etc.)?
5) REFLECTION:
What did you learn about yourself, the community, and how power dynamics in our society work? What civic knowledge/skills did you apply and/or master? Which ones will you continue to work on? How did your efforts impact the community or the common good (or not)? What else could you (or someone else) have done, or could continue to do, to create deeper or more lasting change? How did you personally grow through the project/activity (sample framing: “I used to think …, now I think…”)?
Adult and peer testimony of student civic engagement activities that reflect civic-mindedness and a commitment to positively impact the classroom, school, community, and/or society. Testimony/recommendations may allude to civic competencies and rubric for Criterion #4.
Two recommendations:
One may be from school staff and one from outside of the school community:
Adult educator, supervisor, civic or community leader, civic official, mentor, or coach, a coworker or peer, family friend, but not from a family member.
May not be the evaluator from Criterion 4