ICCE Forms New Civic Education Collaboration Across the Atlantic

The University of San Diego’s Institute for Civil Civic Engagement (ICCE) has formed a collaboration for the exchange of civic education with the Democracy Centre Vienna (DCV) and the Center for Inclusive Citizenship (CINC) at the University of Hannover. The collaboration is the result of the Director of the Democracy Centre Vienna and CINC, Dirk Lange, PhD, spending the Fall 2023 semester as a visiting researcher at USD. Under the invitation of ICCE, the Department of Political Science and International Relations, and the College of Arts and Sciences, Dr. Lange came to USD to work on an American-European exchange of new approaches and innovative perspectives in civic education, focusing on developing civic identity and vectors for civic engagement.

ICCE, DCV and CINC are developing plans during the Spring 2024 semester to host a short series of seminars and workshops at USD with partner K-12 schools scheduled for the next fall. The events will focus on sharing best practices from America and Europe in providing primary and secondary students with pathways and models to effectively engage in the civic life of their communities. These programs will aim to expand the effectiveness, inclusivity, and diversity of engaged citizenship. The project team, led by ICCE Director Carl Luna, PhD, and Dr. Lange, is currently reaching out to middle and secondary school social studies educators and school district administrators from San Diego Unified and the San Diego County Board of Education for participation in this practice-sharing series.

Drs. Luna and Lange envision this series as the first step in a long-term relationship between USD, the Democracy Centre Vienna and the University of Hannover, working collaboratively to build civic education and engagement programs over the next several years. "Working with Dr. Lange and his EU colleagues at Democracy Vienna and CINC Hannover," says Dr. Luna, "will allow USD's influence to extend across the 'pond' and help bring innovative and effective practices in civic education and engagement to the San Diego community."