Alliance for Civics in the Academy

A Research Methods Class that Helps Students Recognize the Worth of Others

Amy Binder, SNF Agora Institute, Johns Hopkins University (2025)

Addressing campus polarization, Binder proposes integrating cross-partisan dialogue into existing courses–demonstrated in her qualitative research class where students conduct interviews across ideological lines to build epistemic humility and deepen engagement with political differences.

Civic Thought: A Proposal for University-Level Civic Education

Benjamin Storey and Jenna Silber Storey, American Enterprise Institute (December 2023)

Benjamin and Jenna Storey propose “Civic Thought”– an interdisciplinary vision of civic education that cultivates disciplined generalists capable of ethical reflection, cross-perspective deliberation, and active democratic citizenship.

Closed Classrooms? An Analysis of College Syllabi on Contentious Issues (Working Paper)

Shields, Avnur, and Muravchick (July 2025)

In this working paper, the authors use data from the Open Syllabus Project to explore the extent to which college courses expose students to scholarly debate on contentious topics. The authors welcome feedback and suggestions.

Commencing Character: A Case Study of Character Development in College

Michael Lamb et. al., Journal of Moral Education (2022)

Addressing the lack of empirical research on university courses aimed at developing student character, Lamp et al. evaluate the “Commencing Character” intervention and find significant growth in seven targeted virtues among participants.

Democracy Re/Designed

American Association of Colleges and Universities (2024)

Amid democratic pessimism, AAC&U offers a new framework and practical tools to help universities inspire dialogue, innovation, and hope for the future of American democracy.

Exemplars of Purpose: Reliance on Moral Exemplars Supports College Students’ Purpose in Life

Heather M. Maranges et al., International Journal of Education Research (2024)

Maranges and colleagues find that a college course intervention centered on moral exemplars enhances students’ sense of purpose and reliance on moral role models.

Practicing Democracy: A Toolkit for Educating Civic Professionals

Nicholas Longo, Campus Compact (March 2023)

Practicing Democracy presents a practical roadmap for educating university students to become “civic professionals,” citizens who channel their professional energy to advance the public good.

Purposeful Change: The Positive Effects of a Course-Based Intervention on Character

Mendonça, Dykhius, & Lamb in The Journal of Positive Psychology (2023)

Using mixed-method data, this study finds that a character-focused college course significantly increased students’ sense of purpose–especially in beyond-the-self domains–highlighting the potential of holistic interventions to foster purpose and character development in emerging adults.