Omaha Public Schools’ American Civics Committee spotlights Civics Bee, voter-registration work and teacher training
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Summary
District consultants told the American Civics Committee about OPS students’ participation in the National Civics Bee, ongoing voter education and registration drives in high schools, and professional learning to tie literacy and social studies instruction together.
Omaha Public Schools consultants updated the American Civics Committee on a series of civics initiatives, including student participation in the National Civics Bee, voter education and registration drives in high schools, and professional learning designed to align literacy practices with social studies instruction.
The presentation, delivered by Lindsey Beaney and Carol Limberobe, framed civics education as a district priority intended “to ensure that our youth are provided the opportunity to become competent, responsible, patriotic, and civil citizens,” according to Limberobe. Beaney said the district supported students’ entry into the National Civics Bee and described other in-school civic opportunities.
Why it matters: The updates outline how the district is connecting classroom standards to real-world civic engagement at multiple grade levels and show explicit steps — competitions, registration drives and teacher professional learning — aimed at increasing students’ civic knowledge and participation.
Beaney described the National Civics Bee as a national, nonpartisan competition organized by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Civic Trust. She said the contest uses a four-question essay prompt; regional competitions run between late March and late May; state finals are scheduled for June 23 in Lincoln; and state finalists can advance to a national championship in Washington, D.C. for a fall competition. “We are proud of these students and wish them continued success as they compete,” Beaney said.
District presenters listed middle schools with students advancing to regionals, including Bluestem, King Science, Nathan Hale and Beveridge Middle Schools. They also described an ongoing partnership with the League of Women Voters of Greater Omaha to conduct voter education and registration drives in high schools. Beaney said drives have taken place in five of nine high schools so far and were expected to be completed in all high schools by April 22.
On curriculum and instruction, Limberobe summarized months of professional learning: from August through January teachers engaged in shared planning to integrate literacy practices across content areas. After a presentation by Dr. Kate Kinsella on fluency, the district said teachers collaborated to plan fluency routines using high-quality social studies instructional materials so students have repeated opportunities to read and engage with grade-level text.
A committee member who identified themselves as a former senior director at the Nebraska Civic Engagement Table praised the civics work and asked whether the district is measuring long-term civic identity among students and whether activities such as the Civics Bee are limited to advanced coursework. Beaney said the civic standards are K–12 and noted that, for high school students, American government includes a civic participation or civic change project as a summative assessment. She said the Civics Bee was piloted this year within an honors special projects class because the timeline was short, but that the district is open to expanding access if the opportunity continues in Nebraska.
The committee held a brief question-and-answer exchange, presenters thanked committee members for their time, and the chair moved to adjourn. The record shows the American Civics Committee meeting adjourned at 5:43 p.m.
