2025 American Democracy Project Summit Call for Proposals

Submit proposals by March 18.
Meeting theme

Full Participation

AASCU invites submissions to present at the American Democracy Project Summit, happening July 13-14, 2025 in Indianapolis, IN. We seek a diversity of perspectives and experiences, and we especially encourage presentations that include students and feature teams. 

Democracy can be frustrating, slow, and contentious. Often, the civic engagement work done on a campus can feel isolated and be un- or under-appreciated. This meeting will change that narrative by showcasing that, through AASCU’s American Democracy Project, there are resources and a community that exists to help build and grow civic engagement within higher education. 

Meeting details.
Proposal formats  

Topical Sessions (45-minute sessions): Presentations, which could be led by an individual or a group, designed to share best practices and/or facilitate conversations about the practical application of civic and community engagement projects. If accepted, you may be paired with another concurrent session to share the 45-minute time block.

Ignite Talks (5-minute sessions): Designed for individuals to share compelling, innovative practices on a large stage, ignite talks use 20 slides that automatically advance every 15 seconds and requires speakers to be concise, prepared, and dynamic. 

Poster Sessions: Textual and graphical presentations of civic engagement projects or research. 

Proposal topics

We recognize how interconnected the field of civic engagement is. This topic selection allows us to maintain a diverse portfolio of options.

What are the key features of the thriving democracy we hope to enact and support through our work?  

  • Navigating legislative challenges 
  • Incorporating and supporting student voice 
  • Redefining political engagement 
  • Incorporating diverse voices in our work 
  • Higher education’s democratic responsibility 
  • Honoring community voices and wisdom—especially for indigenous-serving institutions 
  • Exploring/understanding foundational, democratic documents and their relationship to current affairs 
  • Understanding interrelated concepts of civic engagement, democratic engagement, civic learning service learning, activism, and advocacy 

What knowledge, skills, and dispositions contribute to a thriving democracy, and how do we embed this in our work?  

  • Voter engagement work and results 
  • Increasing civic engagement beyond social sciences; encouraging interdisciplinary efforts 
  • Practicing/modeling difficult conversations/dialogues 
  • Digitial literacy 
  • Bringing curricular and co-curricular efforts together 
  • High impact practices 
  • Experiential learning 
  • AI possibilities 
  • Address the colonization of our educational system 

How can we build the institutional culture, infrastructure, and relationships needed to support learning that enables a thriving democracy? 

  • Institution-wide collaboration and building campus stakeholders 
  • Collaborating with other campuses 
  • Building leadership supports for civic engagement 
  • Aligning institutional mission/values with civic engagement 
  • Integrating campus and community efforts 
  • Building regional support structures 
  • Understanding different campus models for student engagement 
  • Implement and assess institution-wide civic learning objectives 

The 2025 call for proposals has ended.

ASSCI Form Confirmation

Thank you for completing this form to support an AASCI application.

You will receive a confirmation email shortly.

Application Materials

Please note that your application will not be considered without all the items listed below:

  1. Program Proposal 
  2. Nomination Form
  3. Institutional Approval Form
    Form can be uploaded as an attachment to the proposal form, or sent to Sufei Li.

 

Japan Studies Institute Endorsement Confirmation

Thank you for endorsing a candidate for
the Japan Studies Institute.

You will receive an email confirmation shortly. Should you have any questions, please contact Jody Dixon.

Japan Studies Institute Endorsement

Please complete the following form to endorse a candidate for the 2025 Japan Studies Institute by February 28, 2025.

The individual who has asked you to complete this form has applied for the Japan Studies Institute. AASCU’s institutes are designed to provide faculty members and administrators an opportunity to gain an understanding of major historical, social, and economic trends and issues in different countries; infuse courses they now teach with the major themes of the Institute; develop new courses around these themes; contribute to internationalizing the undergraduate curriculum; and/or increase international understanding in the community-at-large.

This endorsement implies that the institution is willing to support the candidate, which may also mean providing financial support to cover the candidate’s ancillary expenses if the candidate is accepted to the program.

Suitable endorsers for this program include provosts, deans, department chairs and senior international officers.

Your statement should be limited to 500 words.

Candidates will be informed of their acceptance status by the end of March.

Should you have any questions, please contact  Jody Dixon.

Japan Studies Institute Application Confirmation

Thank you for applying to the
Japan Studies Institute.

You will receive an email confirmation shortly. For any inquiries or clarifications, please feel free to reach out to Jody Dixon.

Japan Studies Institute Application

Apply for the 2025 Japan Studies Institute by February 28, 2025.

A full submission requires candidates to complete this form, and a nominator to endorse your candidacy (via a separate endorsement form). Suitable endorsers for this program include provosts, deans, department chairs and senior international officers.

For any inquiries or clarifications, please feel free to reach out to Jody Dixon.