Civic Engagement Resource Collection

Materials to Prepare Students for Active Citizenship

The American Political Science Association's (APSA) Civic Engagement Resource Collection provides political science faculty with the tools to encourage student registration, voting, and democratic engagement.

Read APSA's Statement on Civic Engagement and Voting Here

Collection Materials

Campus Resources

Campus-wide civic engagement guides and strategies. Learn More

Raise the Vote

APSA's 2019-2021 Raise the Vote Campaign from a fresh perspective. Browse Here

Pleasant conversation. Low angle shot of young people grinning broadly while sitting on grass and chatting together outdoors.

Teaching Practices

Teaching resources connceting students to the political process. Browse Here

New to the Collection

Engaging in Difficult Election Conversations: 2024 Edition

By Carah Ong Whaley | March 6, 2024

Learning Module: How Elections Are Run

By Carah Ong Whaley | March 6, 2024

Practical Politics: Lessons in Power and Democracy

By Titus Alexander | February 22, 2024

Preparing Students for the 2024 Election: Campus Engagement and Civic Education

Why is it essential to teach democratic citizenship and civic engagement? What concrete steps can higher educators use to connect students to the U.S. election process at all levels? Preparing Students for the 2024 Election: Strategies For Civic Engagement features a discussion of political scientists leading civic engagement and student voter mobilization efforts from institutions across higher education.

Resources Panelists' Shared During the Webinar

2024 U.S. Federal Work Study to Support Student Election Engagement

The U.S. Department of Education recently clarified that Federal Work-Study (FWS) funds can be utilized to support college students in performing nonpartisan work on elections, including on-campus voter registration and assisting government agencies such as state and local election offices. This means institutions across the country have the opportunity to access new funding to help students participate in the democratic process - and we want to help you take advantage!

ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge and Campus Vote Project put together a Federal Work-Study for Voter Registration Implementation Toolkit, a comprehensive guide addressing common questions and challenges that arise when establishing the position. The toolkit includes detailed strategies informed by campuses that have successfully established FWS positions for nonpartisan voter registration. This resource can help your institution fulfill its requirement under the Higher Education Act to make a “good faith effort” to register students to vote.

Contribute to the Collection

APSA's Civic Engagement Resource Collection showcases how political scientists research, teach, and lead campus service to encourage student political participation, democratic engagement, and voting. Collection materials centralize APSA's civic engagement resources, including APSA's 2019-2021 Raise the Vote Campaign, our civic engagement book series, recent peer-reviewed scholarship from APSA journals, and new faculty submissions to APSA Educate.

APSA encourages contributions to the Civic Engagement Resource Collection. New collection materials are promoted in APSA communications and across our digital platforms. Please click here to learn how to contribute a teaching resource or author a blog to be featured in APSA's Civic Engagement Resource Collection.

Join APSA's Civic Engagement Organized Section

APSA's Civic Engagement Organized Section promotes the teaching of and scholarship in civic engagement, sponsors civic engagement research panels and workshops at APSA's Annual Meetings and APSA's Teaching and Learning Conferences, and recognizes outstanding civic engagement scholarship and teaching via annual awards. Click here to learn more about the Civic Engagement Organized Section and become a member.