Celebrating "Civicians"

I keep saying yes.

I probably shouldn’t.? Between leading LearnServe International into its next phase of growth and impact, and parenting my two sons, my plate is plenty full.?

And yet there I was joining the Board of Operation Understanding DC last year as I prepared to transition off the Board of ScholarCHIPS (For Children of Incarcerated Parents) after more than a decade.? In recent years I’ve done a stint on my sons’ school PTA, supported a Jewish organization’s community council, and helped a friend launch a prisoners' rights organization.

If I feel I can be helpful, I tend to say "yes."? I’ve been this way since high school (just ask my parents…)

The cool part is, I'm definitely not alone in this.? Among my friends, neighbors, peers, and LearnServe alumni I’m honored and humbled to be surrounded by dozens of unpaid, lay leaders of musical groups, faith communities, neighborhood associations, sports leagues, professional roundtables, parent-teacher associations, non-profit boards, and so much more.??

Which has made me curious: Who are we? And how did we get started?

Since stumbling across the work of Ashoka more than 20 years ago, I’ve embraced the concept, and the identity, of “social entrepreneur.”? I appreciate its emphasis on the power that each one of us has to lead change – along with its celebration of creativity, initiative, persistence, and a touch of business savvy.? But it’s often felt a bit heavy on the individualism – a focus on the social entrepreneur –and with a high bar for innovation and impact.

Lately I’ve adopted the language of “changemaker,” which Ashoka has popularized as its mission has evolved.? They define changemakers as “having the inner power and confidence to tackle problems as they arise, and to build and implement real life solutions – in teams, with empathy, and for the good of all.”??

I appreciate Ashoka's sentiment that everyone can be a changemaker – that everyone has the power to take on social problems.? However when I hear “changemaker,” I often think of solving social “Problems” (with a capital “P”), not necessarily the everyday acts of kindness and quiet leadership that weave together communities.? Soccer team parents and PTA presidents serve an important, and often under-appreciated role.? Do they see themselves as changemakers?

Early in my career researching and volunteering with the organization Gente Expreasa in Chile, I explored the twin concepts of “social capital” and “civic participation.”? The former speaks to the glue that holds communities together (I still have Robert Putnam's Bowling Alone front of mind), but less about the specific role each person plays in creating those bonds.? The latter trends towards engagement in established political processes and decision-making, and the relationship between civil society and elected officials.? Both are compelling descriptions of a dynamic civil society, but neither focuses on the individuals who devote their time and effort to ensuring civil society flourishes.

I got my own start in this field as a participant in Operation Understanding DC, back when I was a high school student.? At the time the organization brought together African American and Jewish high school students to eradicate racism, anti-semitism, and all forms of discrimination.? The organization has since expanded its scope to engage students of all racial and ethnic backgrounds, with the same mission.? OUDC uses the language of “community leaders” to describe how its alumni will go on to change the world.? While commitment to community is strong in me, and so many other OUDC alumni, decades years later, I tend to picture “community leaders” as individuals serving in visible, public facing roles, and less the people quietly making communities better for us all.

Which is why I've become intrigued by the word “civician.”

A few weeks ago I stumbled across a Washington Post opinion piece by Theodore R. Johnson and Autumn McDonald in which they introduced the concept of “civician.”? (In a brief search online I could not find a prior mention of this word; please let me know if you know its origins if it was not coined by Johnson and McDonald!)

Drawing on the example and analogy of the “team parent” at a kids soccer game (the one who coordinates snacks, practice times, and team jerseys), they define civicians as “civic intermediaries… people who see this larger society as a collective endeavor, who value fairness and principle over winning, who help everyone feel included and part of the team.”

They continue:

a civician is vessel with no age, racial or gender connotation and no legal status implication…? a person who cares enough to ensure meals are brought to a grieving family, who tries to make trick-or-treating a little safer, who doesn’t stand idly by when intolerance and discrimination are directed at members of, or beyond, their community. And whose concern does not stop at the end of the block or extend only to people they know. A civician understands the truth confirmed by sociologists: that social trust is built not by exchanging favors, but by doing for others and expecting nothing in return.”

According to Johnson and McDonald, civicians are the ones who hold society together, in both big ways and small.?

Especially today, amidst a backdrop of extreme social and political fragmentation, they are the ones who say “yes” when their communities call.

The concept of “civician” has helped me better understand my work with LearnServe over the past twenty years.? While we teach social entrepreneurship as a methodology, our impact goes far beyond the social ventures our students create.? We are facilitating a process of personal growth and transformation, which in turn catalyzes a life-long commitment to civic engagement and social action.

I was reminded of this last week over coffee with a LearnServe alum who I first met in 2009, and who I hadn’t seen since 2019.? After completing his undergraduate degree in international politics he served first as a teacher, then a case manager for a homeless services organization, and is now pursuing a masters degree in Latin American Studies with a focus on immigration.

Two weeks before that I spoke with an alum who chose to step aside from a career in tech to join a nonprofit working to defend democracy in the United States.? In his spare time he serves as Board Chair of an organization empowering middle school students to create change.

I’m inspired, and grateful, for their leadership.? But I am not surprised.? Because in our recent external, long-term impact assessment of LearnServe alumni from the organization’s first two decades we found that 98% remain civically engaged – with ? of them serving in a leadership role, such as founder, director, or board member.

Each conversation I have with a LearnServe alum offers a window into what this looks like in practice.? The alumna who has been volunteering with our DC cohort of LearnServe Fellows during the months between her college graduation and a semester abroad.? The alumna serving a school social worker who has also joined our team as a Student Success Advocate.?

The alum who reconnected on LinkedIn a few months back, after starting a new job in the field of social entrepreneurship, to share: "I can't stop thinking about how transformative my fellowship with LearnServe was and the seed and fire it started in me." The alum who, months into a new banking career, reached out to share his eagerness to help out LearnServe "in any way," as a mentor or “by attending public events or donating.”

LearnServe continues to be a powerful influence in their lives.?

In that same study, we also found that: 95% of alumni feel more confident in their leadership thanks to LearnServe. 85% actively consider social impact when making career decisions. 85% believe they can make a difference in their communities. 90% continue to use a skill they learned in LearnServe at least once a year.

Which is exactly what we’ve set out to do: help young people grow as self-confident, culturally-competent, workforce-ready leaders poised to drive social change.??

Or as Johnson and McDonald might put it: making sure we’ve got enough “good people stepping up in good systems” because they “are the foundation of all well-functioning societies — not just the little ones where prosperity is measured in postgame snacks.”

Do we really need to coin a whole new phrase for a concept that’s as old as humanity?? I’m not sure.??

But what I do know is that whether we call them social entrepreneurs or changemakers, civic leaders or civicians, we need a whole lot more of them.

As I reflect on 2023, and brace myself for 2024, I’m reminded of how urgent this work is.? The homicide rate in my hometown of Washington, DC is at its highest level since 1997.? A devastating war between Israel and Hamas has already killed more than 20,000 on both sides.? We’ve just experienced the hottest year in recorded history.? And the 2024 election cycle is just getting started.

There’s a lot of work to be done.? Johnson and McDonald concluded their article with an optimistic, yet cautionary note: “Civicians – if we have enough of them – can be rehabilitative at a time when society needs repairing.? That is, now.”

We can’t afford to leave our future to that “if.”?

We need to build a pipeline of leaders and entrepreneurs, changemakers and civicians ready to both take on all the big Problems (with a capital “P”) and also all the less public but equally important opportunities to help make life worth living.? We need many more individuals ready to take on the building of a strong civil society today – and ready to tackle the brand new challenges and opportunities that we’ll encounter over the next 20 years.

Which is why I am proud to be working with LearnServe, with Operation Understanding DC, and alongside so many other formal and informal educators of all stripes from so many different schools and organizations who are at the front lines of building this pipeline.

Because when our communities call on us to rise to the moment, we need as many of us as possible who are eager to say “yes,” and experienced enough to lead.