The League of Women Voters Chaffee County (LWVCC) announce a county-wide project focused on Civics Education
The bestselling “The Bill of Obligations” is CMC’s Common Reader for 2024. A series of public conversations are being planned throughout the college’s region.
This past week was Civics Learning Week across the nation. The LWVCC took this week to launch a civics project based on the Ten Habits of Good Citizens and the book, The Bill of Obligations written by Richard Haass.
This book is the Colorado Mountain College Common Reader book for 2024 and is being widely endorsed as a nonpartisan guidance for good citizen behavior.
The book, which is a quick read, describes the ways to think about and behave with others.
The LWVCC project is intended to illuminate those behaviors in our Chaffee community. Marjie Gray, a founding member and Chair of the LWVCC said, “I’m proud and excited the League of Women Voters of Chaffee County has stepped up as a leader for the TOGETHER WE STAND project.
“With the upcoming election, it can be easy to focus on what divides us rather than all the many things we have in common,” said Grace Garret, Chair of Voter Services for LWVCC. “The book describes the common ground on how to interact with each other from the youngest in our community to the oldest.”
The Ten Good Habits are:
- Being Informed
- Getting Involved
- Staying Open to Compromise
- Remaining Civil
- Rejecting Violence
- Valuing Norms
- Promoting the Common Good
- Respecting Government Service
- Supporting the Teaching of Civics
- Putting Country First
Author of “The Bill of Obligations,” Dr. Richard Haass will give presentations this coming fall at several CMC campuses as part of Common Reader 2024. Photo by © Kaveh Sardari 2022
Chaffee County is an amazing community of natural beauty and people who truly care about each other,” adds Garret. “This project can motivate us to further enhance our focus on those values.”
The project will encompass three main elements. The first is for organizations, whether for-profit, nonprofit, or government, to endorse the Ten Habits of Good Citizens through commitment to a resolution stating their endorsement of the Habits.
The second is families and individuals signing a pledge to follow the Ten Habits. And third, a contest within different designations of groups to create a form of expression that demonstrate these Good Habits, whether a piece of art, poster, button, t-shirt, essay, oral story, video, social media influencer campaign, or some other expression.
The expressions will be judged by a team of community members, and the finalists will receive awards. The closing of this component of the TOGETHER WE STAND project will be at the end of September with an award event mid-October (date to be determined).
Groups will include middle school students, high school students, veterans, front-line workers like libraries and election staff, book clubs, 4H clubs, and more.
Even before the official launch, the project has received widespread support from leadership at the area chambers, libraries, local and county government, and businesses. The LWVCC’s hope is that all county residents commit to the Ten Habits of Good Citizens so it is “the norm” and illuminated throughout Chaffee County.
With elections in the fall, it is so important to promote good citizenship skills and respect for our friends and neighbors.
For more information on how to get involved, or to sign the resolution or pledge, contact Grace Garret at 512-423-3222 or Grace3Garret@gmail.com. A website will be coming soon. The book, The Bill of Obligations, can be found at Colorado Mountain College in Salida, at libraries, in bookstores and online.
Recent Comments