Tag Archives: civics

250th is a Departure from 200th Anniversary of Independence

BY MICHAEL S. JOHNSON  |  JUN 20, 2026

I celebrated America’s Bicentennial of the Declaration of Independence−our formal separation from the British Empire−on the South Lawn of the White House, July 4, 1976.

I stood there waiting for the fireworks to begin, and looking up at the second-floor Truman Balcony I saw President Jerry Ford, in whose humble employ I was, First Lady Betty Ford, Vice President Nelson Rockefeller, and Second Lady Happy Rockefeller. They were waiting, too, along with other dignitaries. The figures on the Balcony were backlit but still recognizable in the faint yellow glow of twilight.

When the sky did finally come to life with loud booms and patriotic colors shooting out from the ground, there followed oohs and aahs, applause and cheers. There was even a laser projection from the Washington Monument.

For me it was an out-of-body journey into a place and time I thought I would never experience growing up in South Dakota. It was all surreal, accompanied by a burst of patriotism and appreciation for just being there, an eyewitness to history. In 1976, I was fresh out of the corn and bean fields of downstate Illinois, where I was the editor of a daily newspaper. Continue reading →

It’s Time to Make Civics Great Again

BY Louise Dube’ and Shawn Healy, Ripon Society Forum  |  APR 19, 2025 

The Founders would be appropriately bewildered by many facets of modern life in year 250 of the American experiment, but they’d probably be downright shocked by how far we have let our approach to educating young people stray from their original vision.

They believed unequivocally that the point of education in America should be to impart knowledge to young people that would help them be responsible citizens, contributing members of their communities, and ultimately, defenders of constitutional democracy. Thomas Jefferson and James Madison extolled civic learning as a bulwark against tyranny. And President George Washington, in his final Annual Address to Congress in 1796, said that the “education of our Youth in the science of Government” would prepare them to be “future guardians of the liberties of the Country.” Continue reading →

Restoring Civic Education, Civic Engagement, and Civil Discourse

“Knowledge about the ideas embodied in the Constitution and the ways in which it shapes our lives is not passed down from generation to generation through the gene pool; it must be learned anew by each generation.”
–The late Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, founder of iCivics

BY MICHAEL S. JOHNSON  |  NOV 13, 2024

Emily Brubaker, a middle school student from Alaska, thin framed in her dark suit and wire glasses, strode onto a stage in the nation’s capital. She had to wait for the microphone to be lowered for her to reach. She was there to make her case for legislation mandating insurance coverage for people with a serious medical condition that does harm to both eyes and teeth.

Emily was confident and convincing and, combined with other demonstrated skills, she emerged the victor in the first annual National Civics Bee Championship held in Washington, D.C. and hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce Foundation.

Close behind in second place was Michael O’Mara from Iowa, and in third, Keith Lee representing New Mexico, both 14. They were among the finalists competing for the honor.

While they didn’t get the attention of the elections a week prior, the students were tested in a competition that metaphorically was similarly consequential, not just for the students but for a nation of citizens young and old lacking the civics education needed to fulfill their role as future leaders and responsible citizens. Continue reading →