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Applied Civics Project

 

Overview

As citizens of the United States we are guaranteed rights under our constitution including the right to participate in our government. This participation entails responsibilities to our country and our fellow citizens. One of those responsibilities is that citizens be both educated and informed on the issues that affect our society. The purpose of this project is to introduce students to how people exercise their rights and the ways in which government functions. 

This project along with Current Events represents 15% of the semester grade and is aimed at introducing students to the duties of a citizen in a democratic society. It contains some required elements and some elective options. Students will have choices in how to meet the requirements of this project by earning a total of 120 points for the semester, 60 per quarter. Students must provide verification of each activity to get credit.

  • Meetings: Each quarter, student will choose one public meeting to attend and report on from the Public Meeting Section and upload the Public Meeting Verification Form and News Article Form to Google Classroom.
  • Elective Options: They will also choose one elective from the Elective Section to complete and upload the verification document for that option to Google Classroom. 

Applied Civics Project Planning Guide Worksheet

 

 

Public Meetings 

 

Description:

Students will be attending at least one of the following live (past recordings or stream video is not acceptable) public meetings of elected officials per quarter. The purpose of this is to expose them to how business is done by local government and the issues that affect our community. Students may attend any public meeting that is held by an elected governmental institution. Acceptable institutions include; city councils, school boards, county supervisors, and the state legislature. They do not have to be for Santa Rosa, but must be one of the listed types of institutions. These meetings occur on regular schedules and are open to the public to watch and provide input. You do not need to go for the entire time of the meeting, but should stay at least one hour. If possible, try to go during the time of public comments.

Note: Appointed commissions, school site councils, homeowner associations, private organizations, etc. are not acceptable for this requirement.

 

Choose one per quarter

 

Meeting Descriptions and Schedules:

Public Entity

Purpose

When

Where

Links to Agendas

SRCS School Board

Sets policies and approves actions of school administration.

2nd and 4th Wednesday of Every Month at 6pm

City Council Chambers, City Hall, 100 Santa Rosa Avenue

Agendas Zoom links posted 15 mins prior to meeting.

Zoom Link Information

Santa Rosa City Council

Sets policies and approves actions of city management.

Regular meetings of the City Council are usually held each Tuesday (there is no City Council meeting on a Tuesday that follows a legal holiday OR on the fourth Tuesday of the month) at 4:00 p.m. 

City Council Chambers, City Hall, 100 Santa Rosa Avenue

Agendas

County Supervisors

Sets policies and approves actions of county management.

Each Tuesdays beginning at 8:30 AM

Supervisor’s Chambers

Sonoma County Administration Building

575 Administration Drive, Room 102 A

Agendas

State Legislature*

Makes laws for State of California

See website for details.

See website for details.

Calendars, Hearings, Events

U.S. Congress*

Makes laws for the Country

See website for details.

See website for details.

  

*These options are only available if they coincide with trips to those locations and must be attended live and not by video. Prior approval is necessary.

I am providing the above resources to public meetings related to Santa Rosa. If you can not attend these, you can look for meetings from other cities like Windsor, Rohnert Park, Sebastopol, Petaluma, etc.  You are responsible for researching the times and dates. 

Extra Credit Option 10 pts: Video of yourself at the meeting location (not on zoom) delivering your report. The video must meet the video submission guidelines to earn credit.

 

Verification:

Both forms are necessary for credit.

  

 

 

Elective Options 

 

Description:

Each quarter you must choose one of the following options. All students who qualify are encouraged to do to the Register to Vote or Verify Voter Registration options for the 1st quarter. However, any of the following options can be used to complete this requirement. Each one has its own verification form to be uploaded to Google Classroom.

 

Choose one per quarter


Option 1 Registering to Vote/Verifying Registration in a Federal/State/Local Government Election

Description: This is a fundamental right of all U.S. citizens. You must be 18 years or older and register to vote before the election. Who you vote for is up to you, that you vote is your civic duty.

Verification: 

OR

Resources:

 

Option 2 Voting in a Federal/State/Local Government Election

Description: This is a fundamental right of all U.S. citizens. You must be 18 years or older and register to vote before the election. Who you vote for is up to you, that you vote is your civic duty.

Verification: 

  • Selfie with your ballot ready to mail and uploaded to Google Classroom. DO NOT SHOW THE FILLED OUT BALLOT 

Resources:

 

Option 3 Additional Meetings of Elected Bodies or Other Public Groups

Description: This is another public meeting of your choice. It can be one of the meetings of elected bodies listed above or meetings of other public groups such as public commissions, interest groups, or other such groups that advise or lobby their elected officials.

Verification:

Resources: See public meeting chart above for details.

Extra Credit Option 10 pts: Video of yourself at the meeting location (not on zoom) delivering your report. The video must meet the video submission guidelines to earn credit.

 

Option 4 Public Speaking

Description: Public speaking in the democratic process is a basis for the 1st Amendment's freedom of speech protection. This may occur at any public event. This will also satisfy one of the A-G public speaking requirements for current events.

Verification: 

 

Option 5 Court Observations 

Description: One of the most important rights that is guaranteed by our constitution is the right to defend oneself. Trials must be held publicly and anyone can attend. This will be an opportunity for students to see our criminal justice system in action. Most trials in our county begin at 1pm and to observe them will require that a student miss 5th and 6th period. If they choose this option, they must get prior approval from their parents and communicate it to the attendance office in advance of missing class. They will also be responsible for contacting those teachers and making arrangements for any work they miss.

Verification:

Resources:

 

Option 6 Reporting on a Rally or Demonstration    

Description: Students may choose to participate in or observe a political rally or demonstration. Students will be required to gather information about the event along with a photograph of them in attendance to be included in a newspaper article that they will write.

Verification:

Resources:

If you do not have connections yourself, please ask Mr. Brennan for assistance in getting in touch with the group of your choice.

Extra Credit Option 10 pts: Video of yourself at the the rally or demonstration delivering your report. The video must meet the video submission guidelines to earn credit.

 

Option 7 Campaign Volunteer 

Description: Students may choose to work for a candidate, political party or political movement in their efforts to win an election.

Verification:

Resources:

If you do not have connections yourself, please ask Mr. Brennan for assistance in getting in touch with the group of your choice.

 

Option 8 California Proposition Voter Guide Video 

Description: If a local election is occurring during the current course and their are propositions on the ballot, then students can produce a video that explains the ballot proposition and provides the pros and cons to the initiative. The video will be posted to the SRHS Youtube Channel to be shared as a voter guide for the public. The video must use information provided by the official voter guide and be non-biased. Mr. Brennan will have final editorial control on whether the video is suitable for both credit and posting. You can completely produce the video yourself or work with Mr. Brennan to produce it. The video must meet the video submission guidelines to earn credit.

Verification:

Completed video with permission to upload to the SRHS Youtube Channel

Resources:

 Extra Credit Option 10 pts: Submit a video both in English and a separate video in another language.

 

Option 9 Precinct Poll Worker = 60 points divided into both quarters 

Description: The Sonoma County Registrar of Voters has implemented a "Student Precinct Officer Program." California State law allows eligible students to be appointed to serve as Precinct Officers. As such, students will participate in the operation of a polling place on Election Day. This will require students to miss school on the day of election. Students participating in this must get prior approval from their parents and let the attendance office and other teachers know in advance.

Verification:

  • Official Certificate from program uploaded to Google Classroom.

Resources:

 

Option 10 Attend Presentation on Enlisting in the Military

Description: Serving in the military is a patriotic duty, an opportunity to learn skills, and earn money for college. Attend a presentation in either the College and Career Center or at a local recruiting office to explore enlistment options and benefits. To get credit, you must have the recruiter you spoke with email you to confirm that you met with them. 

Verification:

  • Copy of email from recruiter that you have attended a presentation uploaded to Google Classroom.

Resources:

 

Option 11 Successful Publication of Views on Public Policy in Media Outlet 

Description: Participating in the discussion of the public agenda is a fundamental right of all members of our society and is guaranteed in the 1st Amendment. In this activity you will write an opinion piece on a topic that you think the public should know about. Make sure you know the length requirement for the media source you choose. Letters to the PD must be shorter than 300 words. Close to Home articles can be up to 650 words. You will earn points only if the media source publishes your article.

Verification:

  • Published article from news source. Either a picture of the article from the print edition, or the link to the electronic version uploaded to Google Classroom.

Resources:

 
Letters to the Editor

Email letters of no more than 200 words to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Please include your full name and home city for publication. Letters must be original and written exclusively for The Press Democrat. Letters that do not include a home address and daytime phone number will not be considered for publication. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

 
CLOSE TO HOME

Email local opinion pieces (no more than 600 words) to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Commentaries become property of The Press Democrat. They may be republished in all Press Democrat media.