Senators Coons, Cornyn introduce bipartisan bill to strengthen civics education

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) introduced the bipartisan Strengthening Civics Education Act, legislation to strengthen civics and history education in schools across the country and ensure students have the knowledge and skills needed to understand American government and participate in civic life.

"Civic engagement lies at the heart of our democratic process," said Senator Coons. "As we celebrate 250 years as a nation, I am proud to partner with Senator Cornyn on this bipartisan effort to support the preparation of strong civics educators, the promotion of a full understanding of civics among our students, and the training of a new generation of active citizens."

"It is our duty to ensure future generations learn and uphold the values that formed the bedrock of our nation more than 250 years ago, but studies have shown that teachers don't have the resources they need to help teach these critical topics," said Senator Cornyn. "The Strengthening Civics Education Act will help equip educators with the tools necessary to strengthen students' foundational knowledge of our country's history, institutions, and system of government and impart the importance of civic engagement."

The majority of American students lack basic proficiency in civics and U.S. history, and the most recent national assessment showed eighth-grade civics scores declining in 2022 after more than two decades of stagnation. Civics education remains uneven across the country: just six states require a year-long civics course, and only one in five social studies teachers report feeling well prepared to support civic learning.

These gaps reflect a broader nationwide underinvestment in civics education. Students cannot fully understand the institutions that govern their lives or meaningfully participate in civic life if they are not given the opportunity to learn how those institutions work. As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Senators Coons and Cornyn are seeking to reverse that trend by strengthening civics educators and education.

The Strengthening Civics Education Act would take several steps to strengthen civics and history education nationwide:

• Strengthen civics and history education: Reauthorize and expand the existing American History for Freedom program to support education on American political thought and history, representative democracy, constitutional democracy, free institutions, and Western civilization
• Support teachers: Require grantees to collaborate with local educational agencies to give elementary and secondary school teachers opportunities to deepen their knowledge of civics and history, while supporting teacher preparation initiatives focused on civics and history
• Expand access to open educational resources: Promote the development and use of high-quality, open educational resources on American political thought and history and the impact of American representative democracy and constitutional democracies around the world
• Strengthen national civics assessments: Require the National Assessment of Educational Progress to assess student achievement in civics and history in grades four,eight, and 12 at least once every two years, with a methodology designed to provide statistically significant state-level data
• Connect students and teachers with federal opportunities: Establish an America250 Civics clearinghouse, a publicly available website compiling federal scholarship and fellowship opportunities related to civics for students and teachers
• Protect state and local control: Clarify that nothing in the legislation would allow the federal government to prescribe a national curriculum in civics or history or supersede state and local control over instruction

The legislation is endorsed by the CivxNow coalition, the nation's largest cross-partisan coalition working to prioritize civics education, with more than 410 members.

"The teaching of modern democracy requires that our schools and educators have the innovative resources they need to reach and engage today's young people - and it requires that our school systems can track and understand what works and what does not," said Louise Dubé, CEO of iCivics. "The Strengthening Civics Education Act will help make both of those possible."

"Since 1965, the Center for Civic Education has known that robust support for civic learning and engagement is essential to the American system of self-government. Every school, at every level deserves more opportunities to foster the principles and practices of constitutional democracy. The Strengthening Civics Education Act advances that essential goal. By requiring regular national assessment in civics and history, investing in teacher preparation, and expanding access to high-quality open resources, this legislation sends a clear signal that civic education is not an optional addition to a well-rounded education, it is essential to it. As our nation marks 250 years, the Center for Civic Education supports this bill and calls for civic education to receive the same commitment we have long given to other core subjects," said Dr. Donna Phillips, president and CEO, Center for Civic Education.

"The Delaware Center for Civics Education is extremely grateful to Senator Coons for remaining a consistent champion of civics education and for co-sponsoring a bipartisan bill that aims to improve how civics is taught and learned. This initiative could not be better timed as it comes at a highly polarized moment in our nation's history. We are grateful for the opportunity to endorse this bill," UD Center for Civics said.

"One of the American Bar Association's core goals is to Advance the Rule of Law and the first objective under that goal is to increase public understanding of and respect for the rule of law and the legal process," ABA President Barbara J. Howard said. "One way to accomplish this goal is to provide high-quality civic education for people throughout their lives - but beginning as children. The Strengthening Civics Education Act will help ensure that young people understand and appreciate what the rule of law means in their daily lives and that they emerge from school with the knowledge and skills they need to secure American democracy now and in the future."

"For generations, the Y has helped young people build the knowledge, skills, and confidence to participate in civic life through programs like YMCA Youth and Government. The Strengthening Civics Education Act would expand opportunities for nonprofits to partner with colleges and universities to bring meaningful civic education experiences to more youth nationwide. We are proud to support this bipartisan effort to strengthen civic engagement and prepare the leaders our communities need," said YMCA of the USA CEOSuzanne McCormick.

The text of the bill is available here.

A summary of the bill is here.