HomeSchool and Community Outreach

Civic Education in Schools

and Community

Our mission is to foster more active and informed citizens by providing nonpartisan, reliable resources and educational opportunities that advance the understanding of our representative government, elections, and voting.

CIVIC EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS

High School Outreach-- CLASSROOM Presentations
During spring 2023, High School Outreach presented 50 classroom lessons in multiple classrooms in ten high schools in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties. The newest nonpartisan, 40-minute presentation, "Why Vote", combines civic education with voter registration.

From February through April, 2023, classroom presentations reached 1042 Allegheny and Westmoreland County high school students resulting in over 400 student voter registrations.

In total, over 4000 high school students have been reached by High School Outreach over six years, with about 2000 new voter registrations completed.

This past fall, 2022 "Happy 18th Birthday" posters with trackable QR codes were distributed to all public high schools in five counties: Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Washington, and Westmoreland counties. This project empowers students to complete voter registration just as soon as they become eligible.

Happy 18th Birthday

Please contact us for more information and to schedule a visit at: civic.education@lwvpgh.org

Accordion Widget

See More About Our High School Outreach

Over the past six years, in-person and virtual classroom lessons presented to more than 4000 students resulted in at least 2500 voter registrations--with the help of dedicated presenters and committed volunteers. Moving to online registration through trackable QR codes (Turbovote.org, and then Rockthevote.org) we currently track "probable voter registrations". The advantage of these voter registration platforms is that multiple and ongoing reminder text messages about voter registration status and each current election are sent to the students who sign up.

Outreach includes digital resources, like infographics, videos, posters, and slide decks, and digital resources for teachers. (See our EXPLAINERS and GRAPHICS web page for more.)

Printed Resources (see below) have significantly expanded possible voter registrations and voter empowerment: 18,000 Ready-Set-VOTE bags for schools and community have been created and distributed over five elections.

We have received overwhelmingly positive feedback from students and teachers about our program.

CIVIC EDUCATION MODEL 2021-23 from the
League of Women Voters of Greater Pittsburgh
If you are a League member interested in starting your own High School Voter Outreach program or if you would like to download the resources we use, click here:
LWVPGH CIVIC EDUCATION MODEL 2021-2023 PDF
Download: www.lwvpgh.org/docs.ashx?id=831952

"The Youth Vote" WQED Video

In February 2020, High School Voter Outreach volunteers visited Brentwood High School to present their voter registration/civic education program.

Brentwood won the 2020 GOLD Governor's Civic Engagement Award, and along with the League of Women Voters of Greater Pittsburgh, was featured in a PA Department of State webinar on August 20, which promoted best practices in youth voter outreach.

If you will be 18 years old on or by the Primary--
May 16, 2023--you can register to vote NOW!

If you have a Pennsylvania Driver's License or PennDOT ID, you can register online at vote.pa.gov. You may also use the last 4 digits of your Social Security # if you download your signature.
REGISTER NOW!

Much more information can be found on "Voting" web pages (left).

Are you a Teacher, School Counselor, Parent or Grandparent?
Do you have an 18- to 24-year-old in your life? Give them the gift of democracy!

Young people want to be seen and heard.
Help young people take ownership of the power that comes from the rights and responsibilities of turning eighteen.   Share the 18th Birthday card with QR CODE or these other graphics with the young people in your lives!

18th Birthday Card PA 18th Birthday Card US   Claim Your Power- C-U

College and University Outreach

Volunteers share the League of Women Voters of Greater Pittsburgh's digital resources with College and University staff to amplify our reach to students through school social media, websites and email to students.

"Teasers 3.22" provide short social media messages with links to relevant infographics and other documents. Getting these resources directly to college and university students helps them to find reliable and trustworthy election, voting and government information.

The graphics (right) help college-university students understand the ways they can register to vote,

"How to Be a Citizen Activist" Presentation

From August through November, 2021, members of the Civic Education Team were invited to college-university campuses to present "How to Be a Citizen Activist": 101 Years of Advocacy and Action by the League of Women Voters".

The presentations at Carnegie Mellon University, University of Pittsburgh, La Roche University, Chatham Pennsylvania Women in Politics--in partnership with the Black Political Empowerment Project (B-PEP), and Duquesne University were in-person. Most were livestreamed, recorded, and shared in campus newsletters. Specific actions students could take to become better "Citizen Activists" were framed as being every citizen's duty.

"Empowering Voters, Defending Democracy"

Find DIGITAL RESOURCES for STUDENTS, TEACHERS (and other life-long learners!)

Explainers, graphics, and more

Explainers and Graphics

Your Government Officials: "Facts for Citizens" Directory: Contact local, state and federal elected officials, and more.
Your Government Officials 2023

Learn how to debunk dis-information with this graphic

FACT OR FICTION Graphic

Find videos about voting, elections, and government

VIDEO LIBRARY

Websites, lessons, and more for teachers and students

Resources for Civic Education

Not to Be Missed for Students and Life-long Learners
Find informative web pages, all in one place, about LOCAL GOVERNMENT and PA STATE GOVERNMENT on the LWVPGH website. See the Menu for more.

Junior Achievement's BIZTOWN Installation in Bridgeville, PA, for 4th-5th-6th Grade Students

Junior Achievement's BIZTOWN experience is a national project for 4th-5th-6th graders that requires 9-hours of instruction from their own teachers, including a new Civic Education module. Students spend four hours at the impressive BizTown installation in Bridgeville, PA. The 6^th grade students we observed demonstrated problem-solving, creative thinking, collaboration, and team-building skills--and they had such a good time doing it!

Not only do students choose to vote for the “Quality Business” or “Best Citizen” in the new Voting Booth provided by the Pittsburgh YWCA, but they receive a swag bag which includes LWVPGH-created materials (for 4000 students). Students manage business and personal finances; they apply for and receive a business loan from Clearview Credit Union, they receive two paychecks, write checks that are cashed, and use their debits cards when they shop. Six out of 14 teams were able to repay their business loan and show a profit.

LWVPGH members can sign up to help at BizTown now through June. Don’t miss this opportunity to see the best part of our country—our youth in action!

COLLABORATING with the Committee of Seventy (C70)

The Director of the Civic Education team and the Civic Outreach Coordinator from the Committee of Seventy have been collaborating to facilitate communication and to share resources among the community partners engaged in the youth voter empowerment mission in the Pittsburgh area.

Hosted by educators at the Heinz History Center on January 17, 2023, participants met to discuss how to share and support the expansion of voter empowerment and civic education to youth.

Cohosts: Justin Villere (Committee of Seventy) and Amy Kleissas (LWVPGH)

Members from these community partners participated:

League of Women Voters of Greater Pittsburgh
Heinz History Center
Pittsburgh Public Schools Administration
YWCA
National Council of Negro Women
Voter Empowerment Education & Enrichment Movement (VEEEM)
National Council of Jewish Women

Additional meetings are planned to expand participation to more community partners and to develop resources that may be shared among all who are engaged in this important mission.

View the rich civic education resources that have been developed by the Committee of Seventy, here.

CIVIC EDUCATION IN COMMUNITY

Do You Have a Need for PRINTED VOTER MATERIALS?
Contact us at civic.education@lwvpgh.org

READY-SET-VOTE DOOR HANGER BAGS
Did you know that over 20% of our resilient community may not have access to reliable internet? To respond to this need over five elections, our team has created, packed, and distributed 18,000 door hanger bags to high schools and community partners. These grant-funded bags contain voter registration materials and our unique civic education infographics, plus more.

--Over 2000 bags: In 2020 resulted in new voter registrations--like the 187 student registrations at Pittsburgh Public Schools.

--3000 bags for the 2021 Municipal Elections to PPS high schools and community partners
--9000 bags for the 2022 Primary Federal and State Election--4000 for the Primary and 5000
for the 2022 General Election to PPS high schools, Westmoreland high schools, and community partners.
--4000 bags for the 2023 Primary Municipal Election--for PPS high schools, and community partners including 500 bags for ex-incarcerated citizens.

NEED for DIGITAL RESOURCES

During each election season, digital resources found in the
VOTER RESOURCE LIBRARY are shared with broad coalitions of community partners.

Explainers and Graphics

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Support Us

Contact Us

"The Youth Vote" WQED Video

If you will be 18 years old on or by the Primary--
May 16, 2023--you can register to vote NOW!

Are you a Teacher, School Counselor, Parent or Grandparent?
Do you have an 18- to 24-year-old in your life? Give them the gift of democracy!

Do You Have a Need for PRINTED VOTER MATERIALS?
Contact us at civic.education@lwvpgh.org

NEED for DIGITAL RESOURCES

Follow Us

Support Us

Contact Us

"The Youth Vote" WQED Video

If you will be 18 years old on or by the Primary-- May 16, 2023--you can register to vote NOW!

Are you a Teacher, School Counselor, Parent or Grandparent? Do you have an 18- to 24-year-old in your life? Give them the gift of democracy!

Do You Have a Need for PRINTED VOTER MATERIALS? Contact us at civic.education@lwvpgh.org

NEED for DIGITAL RESOURCES

If you will be 18 years old on or by the Primary--
May 16, 2023--you can register to vote NOW!

Are you a Teacher, School Counselor, Parent or Grandparent?
Do you have an 18- to 24-year-old in your life? Give them the gift of democracy!

Do You Have a Need for PRINTED VOTER MATERIALS?
Contact us at civic.education@lwvpgh.org