Tufts to Examine Obama’s Civic Agenda Friday

Scholars Study Obama’s ‘Call to Serve’ After 6 Months in Office

During his presidential campaign, Barack Obama issued a “Call to Serve” and said that he would ask Americans to be active citizens when he was president. Obama said that active citizenship would be a “central cause” of his presidency, and six months later, scholars from Tufts University and other universities will examine Obama’s civic agenda.

On Friday, July 24, from 12PM-2PM, Tufts will host a public conference to discuss “The Obama Administration’s Civic Agenda After Six Months.”

During the past two weeks, 30 doctoral students selected from universities across the country and around the world have explored the meaning of the phrase and how they can be “active citizens” in their fields during the inaugural Summer Institute for Civic Studies at the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service at Tufts.

On Friday, the seminar will end with a public conference addressing the Obama Administration’s civic agenda with a keynote address from Alan D. Solomont, the chair of the Corporation for National and Community Service and a member of the Board of Trustees at Tufts.

Other participants in the conference include Harry Boyte, University of Minnesota; John Bridgeland, former Domestic Policy Advisor and Director of USA Freedom Corps; Archon Fung, Harvard University; Marshall Ganz, Harvard University; Peniel Joseph, Tufts University; Carolyn J. Lukensmeyer, President and Founder, AmericaSpeaks; and Xolela Mangcu, University of Johannesburg.

The discussion will take place at the Rabb Room in the Lincoln Filene Center. Parking is available nearby at the Dowling Hall parking garage, located at 419 Boston Avenue.

The Summer Institute for Civic Studies and the concluding public conference were organized by Peter Levine, research director of Tufts’ Tisch College, and Stephen Elkin and Karol Soltan, both from the University of Maryland.

Information courtesy Tufts University.