Civic Engagement while Social Distancing

All in-person programming has been cancelled until the Fall 2021 semester for the LSC-M Center for Civic Engagement. However, that doesn't mean that civic engagement by Mavericks has to be put on hold. We will be focusing on providing opportunities that can be done at home and/or on your own. Check this site regularly to stay up-to-date on LSC-M CCE happenings!

Jump to: About LSC-M CCE | Voter Registration | If Not You, Then Who? A Civic Engagement Podcast | Deliberative Dialogues | Constitution Day | Participate in Local Politics | General Civic Engagement Resources

RSVP here.

What is Going on this Semester?

Below is a list of happenings during the Fall 2021 semester. Click on each item to jump to more information.

• Politics in Texas
• It is Redistricting Time in Texas!
• February is Black/African American History Month
• Virtual Lobby Day with the League of Women Voters' of Texas
• Migrant Women Mentorship Program (MWMP) 2021
• March is Women's Herstory Month
• 36th Annual City of Denton Storytelling Festival
• 2021 NEW Leadership® Texas Summer Institute for Women Interested in Politics

Politics in Texas

The following are programs specifically about political issues in Texas (updated regularly).

A Conversation with Mike Morath, Texas Education Commissioner Thursday, Feb. 11 | Noon Central Join us live Feb. 11 at noon Central for a conversation with Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath, moderated by Tribune CEO Evan Smith. They’ll discuss the state of public education in Texas, including last session’s school finance bill, issues with broadband access, learning losses and the STAAR test, which students are required to take in person this spring. Register for event here.

What does the Biden administration mean for Texas? Wednesday, Feb. 24 | Noon Central President Joe Biden is approaching his first month in office with a record number of executive orders on everything from COVID-19 relief to energy resources, but what does it mean for Texas? Two members of the Texas congressional delegation, U.S. Reps. Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth, and Michael McCaul, R-Austin, join Tribune Washington Bureau Chief Abby Livingston to discuss how the policy priorities and actions taken by the Biden administration will impact Texas. Register for event here.

Redistricting in Texas

It is redistricting time in Texas!

This year, state lawmakers must take on redistricting, a once-a-decade process to redraw the state’s political maps. While Republicans will largely control that process, redrawing districts will be complicated given the state’s recent demographic shifts, ongoing legal battles, Texas’ history of voter suppression and the ongoing public health crisis.

Programs/Resources on Redistricting:

Friday, January 29, 2021 at 12PM The Texas Legislature Explained: Redistricting Featruing Alexa Ura, Demographics Reporter, and Elvia Limón, Engagement Producer Instagram Live To access the Texas Tribune Instagram account, click here.

Click here for a document summarizing the redistricting process in Texas.

Click here to access the website where you can see current districts for State Senate, U.S. Congress, SBOE, and Judicial.

Hearings on Redistricting

Below is the list of senate regional hearings on redistricting. To access these meetings, click here to visit the Texas Redistricting website.

• January 25, 2021 | 9:00 AM | Austin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: West Texas
• January 26, 2021 | 9:00 AM | Austin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: South Texas
• January 27, 2021 | 1:00 PM (or on adjourn.) | Austin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: North Texas
• January 28, 2021 | 9:00 AMAustin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: Central Texas
• January 29, 2021 | 9:00 AMAustin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: East Texas
• February 2, 2021 | 9:00 AMAustin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: Brownsville/Harlingen/McAllen
• February 3, 2021 | 1:00 PM (or on adjourn.) | Austin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: San Antonio
• February 4, 2021 | 9:00 AM | Austin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: Dallas/Fort Worth
• February 12, 2021 | 9:00 AM | Austin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: Houston
• February 19, 2021 | 10:00 AM | Austin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: El Paso
• February 26, 2021 | 9:00 AM | Austin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: Austin
• February 27, 2021 | 9:00 AM | Austin, TX | SenateRegional Focus: all regions

Programs/Resources on Gerrymandering:

What is Gerrymandering (video by the Gerrymandering Project from fivethirtyeight)

Black/African American History Month Events - February 2021

The following are free community events celebrating Black/African American History Month.

Photo credit: Jay Tovar	BLACK HISTORY MONTH | ZOOM | This program is sponsored by the Holocaust Museum Houston and the Houston Coalition Against Hate. 9 Pieces: An Evening with Kam Franklin Thursday, February 4, 2021 | 6 - 7 PM Join Holocaust Museum Houston in our first event celebrating Black History Month with a lecture and performance piece from Kam Franklin, activist and lead singer of The Suffers, on why she believes healing and unity will not occur without acceptance of trauma, radical healing, empathy, education, and inclusivity. Click here to RSVP (required for event).
	BLACK HISTORY MONTH | ZOOM | This program is sponsored by the Holocaust Museum Houston. Film Screening: "13th" Thursday, February 11, 2021 | 6 - 8 PM In celebration of Black History Month, Holocaust Museum Houston will host a one-night screening of the highly acclaimed 2016 documentary film, “13th.” Filmmaker Ava DuVernay explores the history of racial inequality in the United States, focusing on the fact that the nation's prisons are disproportionately filled with African Americans. Click here to RSVP (required for event).
	BLACK HISTORY MONTH | ZOOM | This program is sponsored by the Holocaust Museum Houston Race and the Houston Police Department with Dr. Dwight Watson Thursday, February 18, 2021 | 6 - 7 PM Author and historian Dr. Dwight Watson will discuss his book, Race and the Houston Police Department 1930-1990, which traces how the Houston Police Department reacted to social, political, and institutional change over a sixty-year period—and specifically, how it responded to and in turn influenced racial change. Click here to RSVP (required for event).
	BLACK HISTORY MONTH | ZOOM | This program is sponsored by the Holocaust Museum Houston and The Houston Museum of Natural Science An Evening with the Lacks Family: The Story Behind The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Tuesday, February 23, 2021 | 6 - 7 PM In this moderated discussion with Holocaust Museum Houston Director of Education, Wendy Warren, Henrietta Lacks' family members David Lacks, Jr. and Victoria Baptiste will share what it meant to find out—decades after the fact—that Henrietta’s cells were being used in laboratories around the world, bought and sold by the billions. Click here to RSVP (required for event).
Access program here.	BLACK HISTORY MONTH | FACEBOOK LIVE | This program is sponsored by the Apollo Chamber Players and Harris County Public Library Centennial Jubilee Sunday, February 28, 2021 | 7-8:30 PM Apollo Chamber Players and Harris County Public Library celebrate HCPL’s centennial year and Black History Month with newly commissioned digital art and music, featuring Houston-based visual artist PHILLIP PYLE, acclaimed multi-instrumentalist composers DAMIEN SNEED and PAUL CORNISH, and special guests from HOUSTON EBONY OPERA GUILD. Live from MATCH in Midtown Houston!

2021 League Lobby Days

Register here.

2021 League Lobby Days - Take Action at the Texas Capitol on Voting Rights & Redistricting! February 6, 2021 | 10:00 AM Join us at the 87th Legislative Session League Lobby Day presentation on our priority issues: Voting Rights and Redistricting. Part 1- Voting Rights & Redistricting a National Perspective with speaker Michael Li - Brennan Center Part 2 - Voting Rights & Redistricting; Impact on Communities of Color in Texas with speaker Dr. Victoria M. Defrancesco - Dean of Civic Engagement LBJ School of Public Affairs Part 3 - You Can Take Action at the Texas Capitol Voting Rights and Election Law - messaging, contacting legislators, taking action with speaker Cinde Weatherby, LWV Texas Voting Rights Issue Chair Redistricting - messaging, local redistricting, testimony, hearings taking action with speaker Stephanie Swanson, LWV Texas Redistricting Issue Chair How Leagues take action - with speaker Janet Imhoff, LWV Texas Advocacy Chair

Migrant Women Mentorship Program (MWMP) 2021

Within the framework of the Feminist Foreign Policy (PEF) that the Mexican Government adopted on January 9 of this year, we identified young women who have the potential to develop professionally but who lack access to services and information. Given this need, the project Migrant Women Mentorship Program (WMP) arises at the Consulate General of Mexico in Houston, conceived as a platform that allows promoting the professional development of new generations of professional women (apprentices) through the mentoring of migrant women (mentors) who have broken the barriers and the impositions of gender, social and cultural, achieving to be recognized in their respective areas and who have also managed to position themselves in positions of power where female participation had been limited.

The MWMP aims to be a support network among women that promotes female empowerment and contributes to eradicating violence against women. Thus, with the purpose of guaranteeing the full and equitable participation of women in all areas of society and favoring that more and more women can access positions of power and decision-making.

General Requirements for Application

1. Have Mexican nationality.
2. Be between 16 to 30 years of age. In case of being a minor, to participate in the project you must have the consent of the mother / father or guardians.
3. Be a student at the high school level or higher and have outstanding academic performance. Or, be a professional in the first years of work experience.
4. Have access to electronic devices and internet connection

Deadline to apply: February 12, 2021

• For more information, click here.
• Apply here.

Women's Herstory Month - March 2021

Celebrate Women’s History Month All Month Long!

• What issues primarily affecting women do you care about most?
• What women today and throughout history have inspired you the most?

Post & tag the following to join the celebration: #MavericksCelebrateWHM & @lscmontgomery

Below are events happening throughout Women's Herstory Month. For the complete schedule, click here.

Access website here.	Herald Native Women: A Celebration of Women's History Month All of March Sponsored by: Vision Maker Media A month-long worldwide online streaming event in celebration of Women’s History Month. “commUNITY: Herald Native Women” features a curation of online films all produced and/or directed by Native women beginning March 1, 2021.
Access program here.	“Girls Rising” Film Screening Wednesday, March 10, 2021 | 2 PM | Discord Sponsored by: LSC-M Center for Civic Engagement  “Girl Rising” is a documentary featuring the stories of nine girls from developing countries, showing how they are overcoming great obstacles to obtain an education and change their fates.  For more info on Girls Rising click here.
Access program here.	"Harriet" Film Screening Wednesday, March 10, 2021 | 6 PM | Discord Sponsored by: Student Life From her escape from slavery through the dangerous missions she led to liberate hundreds of slaves through the Underground Railroad, the story of heroic abolitionist Harriet Tubman is told.
Access program here.	Women and the Pandemic Tuesday, March 23, 2021 | 2 PM | Webex Sponsored by: LSC-M Diversity Action Council & the LSC-M Center for Civic Engagement In September, an eye-popping 865,000 women left the U.S. workforce — four times more than men. This virtual speaker panel will feature women from a variety of fields discussing the impact the pandemic has had on their lives and the lives of women in general.
Access program here.	"RBG" Film Screening Wednesday, March 24, 2021 | 6 PM | Discord Sponsored by: Student Life An intimate portrait of an unlikely rock star: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. With unprecedented access, the filmmakers explore how her early legal battles changed the world for women.
Register for program here.	Citizens at Last: Texas Women and the Fight for Justice Tuesday, March 30, 2021 | 5-7 PM | Zoom Virtual panel and screening of the film "Citizens at Last: Texas Women and the Fight for Justice." Ever contemplate what the fight for women's suffrage looked like? Join the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy at Texas Woman's University as we host a panel and screening of the film "Citizens at Last: Texas Women and the Fight for Justice." Filmmaker Nancy Schiesari and Producer Ellen Temple will talk about the making of the film, their inspiration, and their craft. The film will be shown immediately following the panel. "Citizens at Last" is a documentary film that tells the story of the grit, persistence, and tactical smarts of the Texas women who organized, demonstrated, and won the vote for women. Citizens at Last follows the early days of organizing, explores the strategic role Texas suffragists played in the national movement, and exposes the pro-Jim Crow policies of the anti-suffragists who stood in their way.
Access program here.	Montgomery Women - Leadership Panel Wednesday, March 31, 2021 | 2:30 PM | Webex Sponsored by: LSC-M Diversity Action Council Virtual panel of women from LSC on their experiences being leaders.

36th Annual City of Denton Storytelling Festival

36th Annual City of Denton Storytelling Festival (Virtual) The Magic, Mystery, & Miracle of Storytelling March 11-14, 2021 Cost: $35 early bird (before 2/28) or $45 (after 2/28) The LSC-M CCE will pay for the first 4 students who are interested in attending. E-mail the LSC-M CCE here. For more information, visit: https://tejasstorytelling.com/festival/

2021 New Leadership® Texas Summer Institute

Learn more here. Apply here.

The Center for Women’s & Gender Studies at UT Austin has developed a new virtual NEW Leadership® to be held in June 2021 in collaboration with NEW Leadership® programs from 15 other states. NEW Leadership®, a non-partisan five-day program, gives undergraduate students the tools to become effective leaders in the political arena regardless of their academic interests or career path. During the summer institute, students will meet women leaders from across the country, learn about women’s participation in American politics, and develop and practice leadership skills through panel discussions, workshops, and projects. After the summer institute, participants become part of NEWL’s national network of distinguished alumnae. Week One of the NEWL Summer Institute will be June 9th and 10th, 2021 and Week Two will be June 14th,, 15th and 16th, 2021. Participants should prepare to be available from 1pm – 5 pm CST on those days for a variety of programming sessions. Breaks will be scheduled throughout the course of each day. Commitment  NEW Leadership® participants are expected to attend all summer institute sessions during the entire summer institute from June 9 - 10, 2021 and June 14th – 16th, 2021. If you are accepted, you will be required to acknowledge and agree to meet these requirements. Cost  There is no cost to students. Students will attend panels, classes, and interactive workshops; some having a national focus including participation with students from our 15 of our partner programs and some with a Texas focus designed exclusively for our NEW Leadership® Texas students. Although, we will miss having the NEW Leadership® experience on campus, we see this as an opportunity for you to meet, connect with, and learn from women leaders and fellow participants from across the country while still joining our distinguished network of NEW Leadership® Texas alums.

Deliberative Dialogues

Participate in either a LSC sponsored Deliberative Dialogue or one facilitated by the National Issues Forum. Deliberative dialogues are a program established by the National Issues Forums (NIF), which is a nonpartisan, nationwide network of locally sponsored public forums for the consideration of public policy issues. It is rooted in the simple notion that people need to come together to reason and talk—to deliberate about common problems. These forums offer citizens the opportunity to join together to deliberate, to make choices with others about ways to approach difficult issues and to work toward creating reasoned public judgment. The forums provide a way for people of diverse views and experiences to seek a shared understanding of the problem and to search for common ground for action.

Upcoming Deliberative Dialogues

Click here for upcoming virtual Deliberative Dialogues facilitated by the National Issues Forum.

Join the LSC-M Honors College in a great virtual Deliberative Dialogue on: "A House Divided: What do we give up to get the political system we want?" Mar 9, 2021 | 05:00 PM CST | Zoom Join program here.

 

Participate in Local Politics

Local elections are just as important as the Presidential election. Take advantage of opportunities such as volunteering for a local campaign, attending a virtual local political event, or even watching a local candidate debate.

Click here for a list of suggestions for getting involved in state/local politics

Voter Registration

Registering to Vote while Social Distancing

Voting is the right you use to protect all of your other rights.  Please be a voter.

For anyone needing to register, here are the options to obtain an application:

1. Go to TurboVote's LSC specific website to be walked through the registration process; or
2. Call the local elections office to have an application mailed to you (936) 539-7843; or
3. Go to the Secretary of State website.  Fill out the application online and then PRINT IT and MAIL IT. You cannot register online in Texas.

Once you complete the application, mail the application back to: (The Elections Office is closed to foot traffic.)

• For Montgomery County: Elections Administrator | P.O. Box 2646 |  Conroe, TX 77305-2646
• For Harris County: Ann Harris Bennett | Tax Assessor-Collector & Voter Registrar | P.O. Box 3527 | Houston, TX 77253-3527
• For Walker County: To the Walker County Voter Registrar | 1301 Sam Houston Avenue Suite 114 | Huntsville, TX 77340
• For Liberty County: Liberty County Elections Administrator | 1923 Sam Houston Street | Liberty, TX 77575

Want to help out with elections?

Volunteer Deputy Registrar Program

Volunteer Deputy Registrars are entrusted with the responsibility of officially registering voters in the State of Texas. Appointments are made on a county-by-county basis only, not statewide. The acceptance of duties of a volunteer deputy registrar places you in a position of trust and responsibility to the citizens you will register to vote. For more information visit:

• Montgomery County Volunteer Deputy Registrar Program
• Harris County Volunteer Deputy Registrar Program
• Liberty County Volunteer Deputy Registrar Program
• Walker County Volunteer Deputy Registrar Program

Become a Poll Worker

If you have ever voted in person, you probably already know that a majority of folks who work at the polling places are retired and are at higher risk for experiencing severe complications from COVID-19. If you are someone who is not at high risk, think about applying to become a poll worker.

• Requirements to work as a Poll Worker: In Texas, at a minimum, to be eligible for appointment as a pollworker/election clerk a person must be a U.S citizen and a qualified voter of the territory of the election.
• Apply to be a Poll Worker in Montgomery County
• Apply to be a Poll Worker in Harris County
• Apply to be a Poll Worker in Walker County
• Apply to be a Poll Worker in Liberty County

If Not You...A Civic Engagement Podcast

Episodes of this podcast cover a wide range of topics related to civic engagement.  The first 5 episodes involve an introduction to specific civic engagement subjects and interviews with different folks who are living civic engagement in very different ways.

Below are links to listen to each episode in addition to a breakdown of the episode’s topics, a list of referred to concepts with definitions and sources, and some links related to the episode’s content.

Click here for a list of episodes.

Constitution Day

September 17th is Constitution Day! Every year, LSC-M celebrates the Constitution; however, you don't have to wait until Constitution Day to learn more about it.  Take some time to read the Constitution here.You can also access founding documents and learn more about how each provision was created and changed over time. There is also a great theaterical production, FOURTEEN, that sheds light on the Reconstruction era and the ratification of the 14th Amendment through dramatic interpretation of original texts, performers use the words of the 39th Congress as they debate the propsed 14th Amendment to the Constitution.

General Civic Engagement Resources

The following are resources provided by the LSC-M CCE.

Free Speach Info Sheet (updated Spring 2021)

Safe Protesting Info Sheet (updated Spring 2021)

4 Moves and a Habit: Steps to Assess Validity of News Stories (updated Spring 2021)

About the Lone Star College - Center for Civic Engagement

The Center for Civic Engagement at Lone Star College- Montgomery facilitates nonpartisan learning opportunities for students, faculty, staff, and community members to encourage them to become more engaged citizens.  Our goal is to aid in the development of critical thinking, personal responsibility, and civil discourse skills in participants so that they develop a sense of urgency about issues and talk and act more in their communities, be it their classroom, campus, local, state, national, or global communities.

• Critical Thinking - We will provide learning opportunities for individuals to develop a better understanding of community issues and a more critical examination of all the explanations as to why the issue exists and what can be done to address it.

• Personal Responsibility - We will identify and create opportunities for individuals to become actively involved in addressing issues that exist within their communities.

• Civil Discourse - We will empower individuals to promote interests or causes important to their community while still being able to hear and understand multiple perspectives and engage in productive conversations.

LSC-M Participates in:

         

For more information about the LSC-Montgomery CCE, contact Michele Richey.