Talking Civic Engagement in the Classroom with Gina Roberts

3 Ps in a Pod: An Education Podcast

It’s another election year, and we’re talking with Gina Roberts of the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission about the Civics Classroom Curriculum, a free and available resource to all Arizona teachers.

3Ps host Donnie Dicus welcomes Gina Roberts, the voter education director of the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission, to the podcast. The Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission is the state’s non-partisan voter education agency. The commission helps people learn about the logistics of voting and the candidates and the roles they’re running for. It also advocates for participation in the political process.

The curriculum includes lesson plans designed for grades 4-6, 7-8, and 9-12 with a variety of hands-on activities that can work in both an in-person or virtual setting. The curriculum is also aligned with Arizona State Standards.

Gina speaks to how the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission is a voter-created state government agency that is mandated by state statute to provide non-partisan, non-influencing voter education. The curriculum reviews the election processes, the roles and responsibilities of different elected offices, and media and information literacy skills. She also shares about ways students can become more civically involved aside from voting in elections.

Gina also announces that the commission will soon be releasing a comic book to supplement their Civics Classroom Curriculum. The comic book follows the conflict between the hero Captain Activate and the villain Doctor Apathy who aims to create apathetic voters.

Find this free Civics Classroom Curriculum at azcleanelections.gov/civics-curriculum.

Learn more about the Arizona K12 Center at azk12.org.