Program areas at The Rendell Center for Civics and Civic Engagement
In 2021, The Rendell Center received a grant from The national endowment for The humanities for their july 2021 summer teacher institute on The first amendment for 35 teachers from across The united states. In The summer of 2022, The Rendell Center conducted a summer teacher institute on The bill of rights for 35 teachers from across The united states.
The Rendell Center is also partnering with The annenberg public policy Center of The university of Pennsylvania on judicial independence. Work includes podcasts, webinars and professional development programs for teachers.
The Rendell Center for Civics and Civic Engagement is continuing to develop k-12 Civics curriculum entitled "we The Civics kids" as well as other curricula and pedagogical tools that assist educators in The promotion of Civic education and active citizenship among students. The largest program is our literature based mock trial initiative, which continues to expand, serving over 744 students and 27 classes in 2020, and 345 students and 13 classes in 2022 despite pandemic restrictions and The move to virtual programs. An offshoot of The literature based mock trial program is our read aloud initative which served 72 classes and 1700 students.
The Rendell Center for Civics and Civic Engagement hosts a yearly competition entitled The citizenship challenge. The competition is an essay contest for 4th and 5th graders in The philadelphia and pittsburgh area and encourages students to get involved by submitting essays onvarious constitutional issues facing our democracy. Cash and curriculum prizes are awarded to The classrooms of The top entries. The program has been virtual in 20212022 because of The ongoing pandemic.the Rendell Center for Civics and Civic Engagement also offers opportunities for educators and students to develop knowledge, practices and dispositions of engaged citizenship. These include The organization of speaking engagements, experiential learning activities as well as professional development opportunities for teachers including webinars and workshops. for The general public and those interested in Civics education The Rendell Center conducts webinars and educational symposiums.