Massachusetts Creates Civic Commission

The Massachusetts legislature recently passed a bill, to create a special commission on civic engagement. The goals of the commission are to study the status of civic engagement and learning including civic education from kindergarten through college, opportunities available to students for service learning, programs that promote civic engagement and best practices for civic education. The commission will also evaluate the need for a permanent entity to promote civic engagement and encourage the building of partnerships to enhance learning about representative democracy. The findings of the commission are due to the joint committee on education by January 1, 2009.

Fifteen other states that have officially created a civics task force or commission. Those states are: Alaska, Arizona, California, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Nebraska, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia and Virginia.