Every day, students from across the country join us in Washington, DC, to build the skills and dispositions of engaged citizens.
How do we do this?
On Close Up’s middle school programs, students use the nation’s capital as a living classroom where they explore its iconic sites and discover how the issues and ideals represented impact us today. Through various interactive site visits, workshops, and discussions, students learn the historical events and ideas that have shaped American democracy and gain a deeper understanding of their unique role in our political system.
Highly-Trained Program Instructors
Close Up delivers its world-class experiential curriculum through a staff of highly-trained, college-educated Program Instructors (PIs), each of whom works with a small group of 20-24 students throughout the week. It is in this intimate workshop setting that students work with their peers from across the country. Together, they create a learning community to exchange ideas that expand their worldviews and help them gain a greater understanding of their role as citizens.
Methods
Close Up helps students build a connection to the American political system and find their voices in the process by exposing them to the history, institutions, and processes that demonstrate how our nation’s founding still impacts us today. Our programs provide young people with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary for a lifetime of active and effective citizenship; so they may return home informed, inspired and empowered. So, how does this show up in our practice?
I think Close Up’s virtual program is an amazing experience…
I plan to introduce Close Up’s professional development to the teachers I work with…
and use this as a part of my school’s requirement that students take action on issues of local, national, and international importance.
I learned that there’s a huge network of people with the same goals and drive as me…
and that our collaboration really could make a difference. It gave me hope for the future of our communities and our nation!
Close Up is a positive experience for students…
seeing themselves as having the power to influence the democratic process.