The New Seal of Civic Readiness for High School Diplomas, with Lisa Kissinger (Academic Administrator for Social Studies, Shenendehowa Central School District, NY)

What is the Seal of Civic Readiness, and how can students earn it on their high school diplomas? Last year, New York became the fifth U.S. state to begin awarding this honor to graduating high school seniors for demonstrating certain levels of civic knowledge and participation.  Over 100 New York schools piloted the program during the last school year, and in this episode, I speak to a district administrator who oversaw the rollout of the Seal of Civic Readiness in her large upstate New York district. Even though this episode focuses on one state's policy, it holds lessons for states around the country and perhaps countries around the world, so please stay tuned, even if you're far from New York.

Lisa Kissinger has worked as a social studies teacher at the middle and high school levels and now serves as the Academic Administrator for Social Studies Education in the Shenendehowa Central School District, which is a about twenty miles north of Albany and has about 3000 students on one high school campus.

In this episode, I talk to Lisa about how and why the state developed the Seal of Civic Readiness, requirements for earning the Seal, how exactly students at Shenendehowa High School earned the Seal on their diplomas, challenges and successes of the program's first year, how she expects her school's program to expand opportunities for students to earn the Seal, and her advice for educators elsewhere who are interested in this type of work. 

Seal of Civic Readiness & Related Resources

Educator  Toolkit for the Seal of Civic Readiness

NYS Information about the Seal of Civic Readiness

Key Contact about the Seal: christine.radez@nysed.org

New York State Council for the Social Studies


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Related Episodes of ESD

The Civically Engaged Districts Project, with Prof. Beth Rubin (Rutgers) and Four District Administrators (New Brunswick Public Schools)

Youth Exploring Public Issues & Taking Action, with Jill Bass (Mikva Challenge)