Release: Announcing Documents of Democracy: Lessons in Liberty for We the People

Calabasas, CA (October 6, 2025) — The Center for Civic Education is proud to announce a new partnership with the University of Florida’s Hamilton School of Classical and Civic Education, made possible through a U.S. Department of Education award. Together, we are launching Documents of Democracy: Lessons in Liberty for We the People, a project that will honor America’s 250th anniversary by bringing educators face-to-face with our nation’s founding texts. Evaluating the impact on teachers’ and students’ civic knowledge will be Georgetown University’s Civic Education Research Lab (CERL).

Through intensive seminars, educators will engage in primary source analysis, dialogue-based inquiry, and model lessons to strengthen students’ understanding of the principles of liberty, limited government, and equality. The Center brings its four decades of experience with the nationally recognized We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution program and demonstrated excellence in working with teachers and partners from every state in the nation. The Hamilton School contributes nationally renowned scholarship and the leadership of dozens of primary source scholars from universities across the country. “I am thrilled that the Center gets to partner with the Hamilton School for this timely project. America’s 250th is a great time to bring deep constitutional and civic education to even more teachers and their students,” said Center president and CEO, Dr. Donna Paoletti Phillips.

“The Hamilton School is honored to join this historic effort,” said Benjamin Boyce, Director of Civics Outreach and Strategic Partnerships at the Hamilton School. “Our faculty, as well as our nationwide network of experts, are committed to building rigorous, engaging curricula in history and civics that will help teachers bring the founding documents to life in their classrooms.”

The project will produce enduring resources—including a Primary Document Toolkit for America’s 250 and new Civics Snapshots video series—to reach teachers and students nationwide. Together, we are preparing the next generation to carry forward the ideals of American democracy.

The Center for Civic Education is a national, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to cultivating an informed and thoughtful citizenry committed to democratic principles and actively engaged in the practice of democracy. We do this primarily through our flagship programs, We the People and Project Citizen, but we also provide high-quality, inquiry-driven curricular programs that bring civic learning to life. The Center additionally equips educators with professional learning that builds confidence and capacity to teach civics with depth and relevance, unlocks students’ civic agency by creating opportunities to demonstrate their knowledge and skills, and share their voices through simulated hearings and other public forums. These initiatives build a national community committed to strengthening civic understanding and participation for all and root everything in decades of research and evidence.