Introducing Practicing Democracy: A Toolkit for Educating Civic Professionals

This new publication by Nicholas V. Longo offers practical approaches and strategies for developing students’ capacity to engage in collaborative, public problem solving.

Practicing democracy coverCampus Compact and AAC&U today announced the release of a new publication, Practicing Democracy: A Toolkit for Educating Civic Professionals, by Nicholas V. Longo. The publication is focused on providing tools to faculty at higher education institutions to help them build students’ capacity to engage in collaborative, public problem-solving. Learn more at compact.org/practicing-democracy.

The toolkit is divided into 12 lessons designed to engage students in critical reflection and sustained dialogue that helps them connect with others across differences of background, experience, and perspective. The lessons are targeted to students of all majors and were created with the goal of educating a new generation of “civic professionals”—students who are prepared to facilitate inclusive and participatory problem-solving in communities.

The publication’s author, Nicholas Longo, is a chair and professor of Global Studies and a faculty fellow for engaged scholarship at the Center for Teaching Excellence at Providence College, where he was the 2022 recipient of the Innovation in Teaching Excellence Award. Nick also co-directs the Dialogue, Inclusion, and Democracy (DID) Lab which focuses on using deliberative, community-based pedagogies to promote equity and democracy. He is also serving this year as a deliberative dialogue fellow at Campus Compact. His work, including the earlier publication, Creating Space for Democracy: A Primer on Dialogue and Deliberation in Higher Education, has long focused on engaging students in dialogue and deliberation as a tool for civic education.

Practicing Democracy

A Toolkit for Educating Civic Professionals

Practicing Democracy: A Toolkit for Educating Civic Professionals, published by AAC&U and Campus Compact, offers practical approaches and strategies for developing students’ capacity to engage in collaborative, public problem solving. It provides tools for the students to learn to facilitate inclusive and participatory processes that make a difference. The lessons in the online, user-friendly guide are designed to educate publicly engaged leaders, or civic professionals.

Strategic work requires refined tools. In Practicing Democracy, Nick Longo provides a multidimensional, innovative and well-crafted resource.
- Timothy K. Eatman, Inaugural Dean, Honors Living and Learning Community, Rutgers University-Newark
Building civic capacity in our communities is a critical need, and this toolkit is overflowing with well-designed lesson plans to take on that challenge.
- Martín Carcasson, Director, Center for Public Deliberation, Colorado State University
It is a thoughtfully-constructed guide that is rich with easy-to-use activities and realistic case studies that engage learners.
- Lena Jones, Political Science and Community Development Faculty, Minneapolis College
The wicked problems we face call for a new kind of democratic problem-solving. Longo shows us how to do it, combining practical guidance with a visionary spirit.
- David Scobey, Director, Bringing Theory to Practice
This book offers practical tools to help educators develop civic professionals who have the values and disposition to uplift and support a diverse democracy.
- Marisol Morales, Executive Director, Carnegie Elective Classifications, American Council on Education

Webinar: Get started with Practicing Democracy

Wednesday, April 12
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM Eastern