
Educating for Democracy
A
professional development initiative created by the Constitutional Rights Foundation
Chicago that focuses on civic education and is designed to improve the quality,
content, and process of teaching and learning for the critical elementary
years.
Primary VOICE
Literature and the Law is a curriculum-based program for
primary age students that helps them develop an appreciation for the rule of
law, a respect for the views of others, as well as reading, communication
and cooperative problem solving skills.
VOICE (Violence-Prevention Outcomes in Civic Education)
Fifth-graders
learn the basics of the American legal system, practice ways to resolve conflict
peacefully, and engage in community service.
A More Perfect Union
A
new, interactive seventh and eighth grade curriculum about the U.S. Constitution
to meet Illinois Public Law 195.
Project Citizen
A
national civic education program for 5th-8th grade students, coordinated in
Illinois by the Constitutional Rights Foundation Chicago, that promotes competent
and responsible participation in state and local government.
Lawyers in the Classroom
Attorney
volunteers partner with teachers to help students understand their rights
and responsibilities under the law using CRFC's curricula in Chicago and the
greater metropolitan area.
Illinois Youth Summits
Since 1995, the Illinois Youth Summit has given youth
a voice in decisions that affect them by promoting awareness, investigation
and civic action by high school students on current public policy issues affecting
youth.
Equal Justice Under Law
A statewide constitutional issues and public policy program for Illinois high school students. Students examine a recently decided United States Supreme Court case as "justices" and consider related public policy questions applicable in schools, local and state government with expert policymakers.
Teaching American History Initiatives
Youth for Justice
A
national network of law-related education organizations, providing training,
materials, and technical assistance to every state. Youth for Justice sponsors
student programs such as Youth Summits.
Deliberating
in a Democracy (DID)
This
five-year international program involves high school students and their teachers
at six sites-Azerbaijan, the Czech Republic, and Lithuania, and the metropolitan
areas surrounding Chicago, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC-in deliberating
current issues that represent tensions between liberty, equality, and safety
with each other and with policymakers.
CRF National Teach-In
Over
9,100 students in 26 states participated in CRFC's web-based program for middle
and high school students to teach other students about tensions that arise
between safety, liberty, justice, and equality using lessons posted on CRFC's
website.
Youth Courts
Information
and training resources for using field-tested community service learning modules
for use on Saturdays adaptable to meet a variety of sentencing and learning
needs. Developed in cooperation with the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention (OJJDP) of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Disproportionate
Minority Contact Initiative (DMC)
Resources
and lessons to address the disproportionate percentage of racial minorities
that come in contact with the criminal justice system. Coordinated with the
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the U.S. Department
of Justice.
Youth Teleconferences
Students
from the Chicago area, the Czech Republic and Estonia, exchanged ideas on
to prevent and punish crimes such as burglary thanks to the U.S. Embassies
and the U.S. District Court of Northern Illinois teleconferencing facilities.
2008 Summer Institutes
2007 Summer Institutes
2006 Summer Institutes
2005 Summer Institutes
2004 Summer Institutes
2003 Summer Institutes
Four- and
five-day intensive teacher training sessions for both elementary and secondary
level instructors.
Annual Illinois LRE Conference
Workshops
for teachers address current legal and political issues, interactive teaching
methods, and innovative materials for the classroom.
Teaching American History Initiatives
CRFC Bill of Rights in Action Award
Presented
annually to honor those individuals and organizations who, through their professional
and community endeavors, provide exemplary models of citizenship for our nation's
youth.
Co-sponsored Programs
Other Opportunities for Teachers and Students
Discussion Workshops
Teachers
learn and practice strategies for conducting effective workshops on controversial
topics.
In-Services, Workshops and Seminars
Day-long
workshops and multiple day seminars for interested teachers on both legal
issues and law-related methods and classsroom strategies.
Last updated: July 2007