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The James Madison Legacy Project is a three-year nationwide initiative of the Center for Civic Education that will (1) increase the number of highly effective teachers of high-need students through the professional development of 2,025 teachers, (2) increase the achievement of at least 202,500 students in attaining state standards in civics and government, (3) serve the self-identified professional development needs of a minimum of more than 500 participating schools with significant concentrations of high-need students throughout the United States, and (4) evaluate the relative effectiveness of the Center’s research-validated traditional We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution professional development model enhanced with online resources and a new blended-learning variation of the traditional model that also uses online resources.

The project will focus on identifying cost-effective means of providing widely available professional development programs useful in enhancing the knowledge and skills required of teachers to promote high-need and other students' attainment of state standards in civics and government. 

The James Madison Legacy Project is made possible by a generous grant from the U.S. Department of Education through the Supporting Effective Educator Development program.  The Iowa State Bar Association is the sub-award recipient of this grant in the state of Iowa.  

Each cohort will focus on key civic education questions such as:

• • What are the philosophical and historical foundations of the American political system?

  • How did the framers create the Constitution?

  • How has the Constitution been changed to further the ideals contained in the Declaration of Independence?

  • How have the values and principles embodied in the Constitution shaped American institutions and practices?

  • What rights does the Bill of Rights protect?

• What challenges might face American constitutional democracy in the 21st century?