History essay

California State University, San Marcos

History 131: U.S. History from 1877 to Present

Summer Session II: July 10-August 12, 2017

CIVIC AGENCY PROJECT

The Civic Agency Project asks you to think about moments in American history from 1865 to

the present when democracy was reinforced and advanced by every day Americans working to

solve problems and create common ground through civic agency.

Respond to one of the following two prompts:

1) Describe an event in American history from 1865 to the present in which the

U.S. Constitution (and especially the First Amendment) was expressed, confirmed,

or advanced through the actions of a diverse group of every day Americans.

2) Describe an event in American history from 1865 to the present in which the

Declaration of Independence (and especially the Preamble) was expressed,

confirmed, or advanced through the actions of a diverse group of every day

Americans.

You may choose any topic—with the exception of the Civil Rights Movement. As was the

case with the Civic Engagement Assignments, you are required to provide historical context,

concrete examples, and documentary evidence. You are strongly encouraged to reference the

Charters of Freedom, as well as The American Yawp Reader and The American Yawp textbook.

In contrast to the Civic Engagement Assignments, you will be using a digital platform to write

your essay, which you will share with the entire class. You will be using Storify

https://storify.com / to present your essay.

 Watch this introductory video, then log in to register to create your digital history story

 At a minimum, you are required to include fifteen (15) different social media sources.

 As you bring the various social media links (including images and videos) into your essay, you must insert your own comments, with primary sources as evidence and as

explanation.

 When you have finished the digital essay, you will need to “publish” your story and capture and submit the url to Cougar Courses.

A link to your Storify essay is due to the Cougar Courses site

by Saturday, August 12, before midnight.

CIVIC AGENCY involves the capacities of citizens to work collaboratively across differences

like partisan ideology, faith traditions, income, geography and ethnicity to address common

challenges, solve problems and create common ground.