The NAEP Report on the 1998 Civic Education Assessment indicates widespread deficiencies in the civic knowledge of U.S. students. Other recent studies document the diminished engagement of young Americans in our nation's public life.

No single institution bears sole responsibility for this problem. But we believe that educational institutions can make a key contribution to solving it. There is persuasive evidence that rigorous and multifaceted civic education in schools, primary and secondary, can improve students' knowledge, and that this knowledge promotes civic beliefs, civic character, and civic involvement. There is also evidence that other key programs and practices - such as a democratic school climate, the regular reading of newspapers, training in voting, mock conventions, student contact with public officials, and school and community-based service-learning - can boost civic knowledge, skills, and engagement.

Many individuals and groups have worked for years to further the cause of civic education. We believe that the time has come to band together to achieve greater visibility, efficacy, and mutual reinforcement. To this end, we the undersigned are coming together to form the National Alliance for Civic Education (NACE). We urge all like-minded individuals and organizations to join us.

The mission of the Alliance is to work to help citizens across the country better understand the significance of effective civic education for a well-functioning democracy. Our nation's civic vitality and its democratic future are at stake.

NACE is an alliance of organizations whose goals include:

to raise the amount, quality, and visibility of civic education in our schools, communities, and nation;

to increase dramatically high?quality pre-service and professional development opportunities for all teachers involved in civic education;

to provide all teachers with improved access to reliable information on curricula, texts, materials, and pedagogical practices that effectively engage students in civic learning;

to offer all students expanded opportunities to participate meaningfully in the civic life of their communities;

to intensify community support for civic education initiatives among parents, youth organizations, community groups, philanthropic organizations, corporations, and the media;

to mobilize institutions of higher education on behalf of civic education and engagement, with special attention to the professional development and support for all educators pursuing these objectives;

to encourage every state to include rigorous programs of civic education in schools and to assess their effectiveness systematically;

to encourage the federal government to support civics assessments regularly, with state-level results to make them more useful to state and local civic education programs;

to share information about research on civic education and engagement, new and on-going programs, the availability of resources, and opportunities for collaboration;

to encourage the formation or enhancement of state-based alliances for civic education in the United States and;

to create linkages and exchanges with civic educators and organizations in other countries and with international organizations.

The original declaration is available on the APSA website, www.apsanet.org/teach/nace.cfm.