What is it and what can it do? Project Citizen What is it and what can it do?

The Goal Identify a problem and present a solution This is not about doing a bunch of work for a grade—this is about trying to fix something you are not happy with Students have made huge changes in the US and around the world with this

The Process Identify a problem Propose various solutions to the problem Decide on the class policy to solve the problem Devise a plan to put this policy into place Present our research and proposal to the appropriate authorities

Humpty Dumpty Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king’s horses, And all the king’s men Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

Example: Humpty Dumpty Identify the Problem Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall and had a great fall, all the king’s horses and men could not put him together again. There is a wall that is not safe for people to be on because they risk falling and injuring themselves

Example: Humpty Dumpty Propose Possible Solutions: Leave things as they are Put a fence on each side of the wall to keep people off of it Put a warning sign on the wall to warn people of the dangers of falling off the wall Tear down the wall Hire a guard to watch the wall & keep people off

Example: Humpty Dumpty Select a Class Policy A sign warning of the dangers of climbing on, sitting on, walking on, or playing on the wall should be posted every ten feet to warn people of possible dangers. Fence policy is redundant and expensive Tearing down wall means replacing it later Hiring a guard would be very expensive Leaving things alone is not a good option Warning: Stay off wall!

Example: Humpty Dumpty Action Plan Because the wall is in a city park, we will contact the Parks Department and inform them of the problem and ask them to remedy the situation with the signs. Because the Parks Dept. might not have enough money for the signs, we will ask local hardware stores to donate materials for the signs and give them credit for helping. We will work to get the Parks Dept. to keep the signs in good condition. If accidents continue to occur with the signs in place, we will consider another policy.

Example: Humpty Dumpty We will display our research on a display that diagrams each part of the process.

Why Project Citizen? Service Learning Hours forced students to volunteer in the community—could not force students to get involved Project Citizen should benefit the community either directly through changes we can make or indirectly through showing us how to work with the government to improve things This system works!