Civic Spirit Clubs

Designing Solutions to Local Issues

Interested in making change in your local community?

Through Civic Spirit Clubs, members forge strong relationships, learn to problem-solve, and gain valuable experience as responsible civic participants and leaders in their communities.

With the support of their advisor, students develop and present creative solutions to address issues facing their local communities.

Program Components

Phase 1

Build Community and Knowledge

Phase 2

Create and Develop a Capstone Project

Phase 3

Present and Celebrate

What do students gain by joining a Civic Spirit Club?

  • BUILD relationships with people in a collaborative community
  • LEARN from experts about important civic issues
  • NETWORK with students doing similar work across the country
  • CREATE a capstone project to positively influence their community on a local level

What are the details?

  • Open to all students in grades 9 – 12 with Civic Spirit Clubs in their schools
  • Club members attend in-person club meetings, and virtual workshops with their peers in other schools
  • The frequency of the meetings might vary; however, the minimum meeting requirement is bi-weekly

Which students will thrive by joining this club?

  • Students who are interested in making a difference and ready to act on important issues facing their local community
  • Students who have a particular interest in politics, history, social issues, and public policy
  • Students invested in working with their club advisor to help shape the nature of the club’s direction, and are not simply looking to show up and be told what to do

What does an educator gain from advising this Club?

  • Due to a generous grant, Civic Spirit can offer the Club advisor a stipend of  $2026 for the year, in honor of the upcoming United States Semiquincentennial in 2026
  • Support of Civic Spirit’s training and materials to facilitate sessions for Club members 
  • Three group collaboration calls throughout the year with other Club advisors to share with/learn from each other

Interested in setting up a Civic Spirit Club at your school?

Contact Hillary Gardenswartz (Civic Spirit’s Director of Student Experiences) at hillary@civicspirit.org