As one of only five states in the nation that offer a high-school diploma seal focused on civic engagement, California has been working to lead the way for students to graduate from high school with a robust civic education.  And researchers have been looking closely at how the California State Seal of Civic Engagement (SSCE) has been rolling out since its initial adoption just over a year ago.  One of the CHSSP’s close partners, Leveraging Equity and

Emily Drum taught history, civics, government, and economics at Monache High School in Porterville, a town in the San Joaquin Valley, where she worked to engage students’ voices. Emily Drum in conversation with the author, October 7, 2021.

“We only need to read the news to see that we are in a critical moment in U.S. History.  11th grade US History allows us to directly enter the exploration of this current reality with our students by making their history class relevant and up-to-date.” This is how Devin Hess, Program Coordinator at the UC Berkeley History-Social Science Project recently explained the urgency, the substance, and the goals of the 11th Grade Group.  To lead the modern-U.S.