Please email me (lbrando@stuy.edu) if you would like me to post an announcement that is relevant to government, civics, and/or history to this page.

Events

• Email me to post upcoming events that would be interesting and relevant (to social studies) for students.

Interesting Reads

The End of Imperialism, Daniel Immewahr, The New Yorker 

Political History beyond the Red-Blue Divide, Matthew D. Lassiter (2011) 

Opportunities

• Founding Forward  and the Bill of Rights Institute are inviting students to attend Debate & Leadership Institute ! Share the 5-day debate program in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, July 20-24, 2026. 

Debate & Leadership Institute is open to high school students entering 10th, 11th, and 12th grade in the 2026-2027 school year. Participants will spend the week strengthening their debate skills and  deepening their civic knowledge through:

• Expert-led discussions 

• Real-world debate training 

• A competitive debate tournament 

• A tour of historic Philadelphia, including the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall

The deadline to apply is Friday, May 1.  A $150 fee is required at the time of registration.  Full tuition for the program includes,  lectures, room and board, all meals, site visits, and program materials for a $1,000. Scholarships are granted to accepted attendees for the full cost of attendance. 

• The 2026 Leadership Institute is an exciting opportunity for students to connect with their peers from across the city, learn from experts from community-based organizations, and teach elementary students how to help their community! Learn more in the program FAQ. Students in grades 10–12 who are interested in becoming leaders while also serving the community should be encouraged to apply. The program consists of a five-day in-person Institute in midtown Manhattan during spring break, from Monday, April 6 through Friday, April 10, 2026 from 9:00am–3:00pm each day, and an in-person after-school session on May 7, 2026. Throughout the program, students work in small groups to learn about local issues, culminating in the planning and implementation of a day-long Youth Service Summit for elementary school students in May 22, 2026. Interested students should complete the application by 11:59pm on Friday, February 13. If you have any questions, email ServiceinSchools@schools.nyc.gov.

• Bill of Rights Institute: My Impact Challenge: an opportunity for students to win up to $10,000, boost college applications and resumes, be recognized in the community, and connect with other young changemakers by sharing their active engagement in community service, volunteerism, or entrepreneurship. 

• BoR Institute: Debating Matters: Transatlantic (DMTA) brings students from the U.S. and U.K. together through a virtual debate competition, rigorous training, and a 4-day in-person program in London, UK. Students are invited to apply and join this robust team of well-rounded thinkers who can communicate clearly, collaborate respectfully, and navigate complex questions here and across the Atlantic! The program is open to public, private, charter, or homeschool students currently in grades 9-11 who are age 14 years or older by November 1, 2026, and eligible for travel to the United Kingdom in November of 2026. The first step is to submit the Virtual Qualifier Application before the deadline on Sunday, Feb. 22.  

• AllSides Student Journalism Contest  

• Ballotpedia, the Encyclopedia of American Politics, invites you to apply to join the Spring 2026 Ballotpedia Fellows Program. Reliable, nonpartisan information about local candidates is often difficult to find. In 2026, Ballotpedia is expanding the scope of data we collect on local candidates and elections, and Fellows play a direct role in making that work possible. As a Ballotpedia Fellow, you will research assigned local candidates and add key information, such as contact information, endorsements, and campaign themes, to our database. After completing self-led training, you will contribute directly to a trusted resource used by millions of voters, journalists, and researchers.

The Spring 2026 Fellows Program runs from Feb. 23 through April 24, 2026. Fellows volunteer 5 to 10 hours per week on a flexible schedule, and all work is fully remote. All you need is a computer with a reliable internet connection. Ballotpedia can provide documentation of volunteer hours for school, work, or course credit when applicable. Letters of recommendation or professional references may also be available based on individual participation. Applications will be accepted on a rolling, first-come basis through Feb. 4, 2026. Don’t miss your chance to contribute to reliable local election coverage this spring!

• Founding Forward and the Bill of Rights Institute are inviting your students to attend Debate & Leadership Institute, for a 5-day debate program in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, July 20-24, 2026. Debate & Leadership Institute is open to high school students entering 10th, 11th, and 12th grade in the 2026-2027 school year. Participants will spend the week strengthening their debate skills and  deepening their civic knowledge through:

  • Expert-led discussions 

  • Real-world debate training 

  • A competitive debate tournament 

  • A tour of historic Philadelphia, including the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall

The deadline to apply is Friday, May 1.  A refundable $150 fee is required at the time of registration.  Full tuition for the program includes,  lectures, room and board, all meals, site visits, and program materials for a $1,000. Scholarships are granted to accepted attendees for the full cost of attendance. 

Showcasing Student Work from Fall 2025 ~ Principles & Practices Podcasts

Period 1:

AMA Daily Produced by Andrew Tsai, Ansel Darnell, Maxwell Derella

Justice Under Pressure | The Thought - Annie Li, Max Abraham, Eric Liu, and Amrit Das 

Diving Deeper (Into Food Insecurity) - Ada Gordon, Siena Short, Nathan Luan 

The Invisible Line: The Intersection of Immigration Policy, Health, and Poverty in NYC: Daniel Caal, Arithra Saha, Andrew Montes 

Anoushka, Alexa, and Ellis Report on Immigration. Anoushka Knowles, Alexa Leahy, Ellis Thompson 

The Sunday Talk Show: Jonathan Yao, Kelly Chen, Jolin Suyono

Today’s Issues - Redita Reza, Naomi Kurdian, Dheenah Whaqid 

Government Unfiltered: The ICE Age (Ep. 1) Produced by Scarlett Kuit, Jenna Battista, Zihe Huang

The Daily Current: Produced by Andrew Tang, Brian Chen, and William Li 

SVS Podcast: Episode on Immigration -- Shannon Mulyadi, Scott Chu, Vicky He 

Women in the World: Women’s Hygiene and Health Produced by Xili Chen, Emma Nakhle, and Olivia Cisse 

Period 2:

Wait... That's Legal? Episode No. 26 Civics250: Ella Labinskiy, Cayla Chew, Veronika Gulko  

The New Yorker's Public Radio: Civics Connections Audrey Jing, Albert Shen, Samuel Sunko

Shared School Responsibility: Sarah Chen, Sophia Chi, Rachel Kim  

Feeding the Fires of Democracy By: Vanna Lei, Stella Anderson, Elaine Chen

Freedom to Think: Book Bans: Myles Vuong, Rahul Kissoon, Sebastian Tecza

Touching Grass News: Prince Zheng, Joonhwan Choi, Jayden Chu

Environmentalist Examiners: Axel Stahl, Erin Cho, Daniella-Malouse Nkunga

Immigrant Rights & Protections in the U.S.: Ahana Chandra, Victor Dotov, Fatima Naveed

Up Second: Free Speech Rights on University Campuses by Leah Riegel, Alma Wosner, and Sophie Tulovsky 

The Student Government: Justin Codner, Alexei Ostasiewski, Alexander Chen, Timofey Volvovskiy

Defending Public Institutions: New York City’s Homeless Crisis and the Tompkins Square Riot, Evelyn Liu, Audrey Hilger, Eleanor Aranda

Period 6:

Parks & Rec Podcast:  Zachary Aaron, Stephen Chen, James Lei 

TheCivicPulsePodcast:  Adam Snir, Harrison Lee, Belal Hassan 

Parkcast - Ethan Kong, Raymond Kang, Si Han Wang (Period 6)

ASK Podcast, Ankita Hassan, Sophie Shih, Karina Huang

Our Woes with Immigration - Urim Lee, Carmen Gomez-Villalva, Tony Chen, Jake Liu

Call Your Reps: Defend the NEA!: Elizabeth, Arianne, Sasha  

DWM Radio — Book Bans: Dean, William, and Matthew

The Wilderness Podcast: Vincent Chiu, Alvin Sze, Aritro Chakravarty

Hear The Truth: Marlee Sidor, Nowar Nizum, and Simone Morden 

The Morning Announcements: Andrew, Zeke, and Stefan

JRA Podcast: Angel Huang, Ray Lattapongpisut, and Justin Zhang

Period 9:

ICE: Past, Present, and Future  -- Benjamin Yarden, Leo Titievsky, Ryan Yang, Maxim Peker

Banned, Filtered, and Censored Podcast - Kassandra Sinchi, Natalie Kim, Lily Diehl-Yue

Chalkbeat: Factors that Influence Student Learning: Fiona, Doru, and Maximiliano   

Patterns of Voting: Homelessness and Housing Insecurity: Erin, Rafael, and Clara 

The Think Twice Podcast: Behind the Screens: Mark Choi, Daniel Yang, Lixin Zhang

Censorship and the Internet: Zixi Qiao, Jerry Wang, Isabel Noh

Civic Responsibilities and Upholding Communities: An Analysis and Application of Timothy Snyder's On Tyranny: Anna Lyzhyn, Samantha Hashimoto, Jamie Li, Rebekah Abraham 

The Apathy Antidote: Ardian Agoes, Calvin Ye, Alan Liang, Jackson Peng 

A Portion on Abortion: Ariana Lin, Hannah Moon, & Sonya Cisse  

Uncle S.A.M.S. - Libraries and Book Censorship: Sara Tang, Mahjabin Chowdhury, Aarya Balakrishnan and Sama Daga  

Civic Engagement:

Defending Democracy with Poetry by Felice Li, Vinny Lin, Grace Louie, and Eileen Xu -- Poetry inspired by Timothy Snyder's On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century

Advocacy in Albany urging Gov. Hochul to sign the Climate Change Superfund Act: See New York advocates restless amid negotiations over potential Climate Change Superfund Act chapter amendments 

Organizations fighting for Asian American rights:

• Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Atlanta (Website, Twitter, Facebook)

• Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AJC (Washington, DC) (Website, Twitter, Facebook)

• Stop AAPI Hate (Website, Twitter, Facebook)

• National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (Website, Twitter, Facebook)

• 18 Million Rising (Website, Twitter, Facebook)

• APIA Vote (Website, Twitter, Facebook)

• APIA Health Forum (Website, Twitter, Facebook)

• National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (Website, Twitter, Facebook)