David Mathews Center for Civic Life 2009 Annual Report

DAVID MATHEWSCENTER FOR CIVIC LIFE2009 Annual Report

Table of Contents

2 David Mathews Center Annual Report 2009

DMC Board of Directors and Officers

O’C Internship Program Faith-Based Communities

Teachers’ Institute on NIF in the Classroom

Alabama Issues ForumsThe Mathews Center3

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Table of Contents

The Mathews Center

he David Mathews Center for Civic Life is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, tax-exempt corporation

established in 2005 as the Alabama Center for Civic Life. In 2008, the name was changed to the David Mathews Center for Civic Life, in honor of David Mathews, a native of Grove Hill; former president of the University of Alabama; former secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare; and

“To think of politics as a public activity changes the very meaning of politics. Politics becomes the art of making productive relationships among diverse people rather than just passing legislation or electing representatives.”—David Mathews, Politics for People

T currently president and chief executive officer of the Charles F. Kettering Foundation.

The Mathews Center’s purpose is to foster infra-structure, habits and capacities for more effective civic engagement and innovative decision mak-ing. The Mathews Center is focused on how citi-zens create political will and sustain innovative community decisions.

SIGNATURE ASSUMPTIONSl Political problems are primarily problems of working relationships.l The biggest challenge to any community is the capacity of its citizens to make effective decisions together across the range of issues they face.l Civic life in a democracy means citizens must take responsibility for making hard choices and must develop infrastructure and practices that enable them to do so.

SIGNATURE PROGRAMSl Alabama Issues Forums (AIF) Working with conveners and existing networks and organizations, such as the Southern Growth Policies Board and National Issues Forums Institute to conduct community forums and related research in the areas: l Education l Economic Development l Public Health

l Coaching Community Innovation (CCI) Workshops Providing workshops to improve community capacities to make innovative decisions, secure commitments to act together and learn from experiences

l Jean O’Connor-Snyder Community-Based Research Internship Program Engaging college students in researching and conducting AIF deliberations and CCI Workshops

l Annual state-wide meetings at American Village in Montevallo and other sites to report research, conduct learning experiences in civic practices and celebrate community innovations

l Joint Learning Programs with American Village Creating civic learning programs in deliberative democracy for students and their teachers who visit American Village annually

David Mathews Center Annual Report 2009 3

Faith-Based Communities


Alabama Issues Forums

The David Mathews Center Officers and Board of Directors

Ray Minor is chairman of the Mathews Center. He served as a member of the Board of Directors of the National Issues Forums Institute. Minor was appointed vice president of advancement for United Methodist Homes of New Jersey, which provides quality and caring services to senior men and women in 10 Christian communities across the state of New Jersey.

Minor served as president of the Alabama Center for Civic Life, vice president for institutional advancement at Wiley College, executive director of national and community service for the State of Alabama, Alabama area development director of The College Fund/UNCF and as development director at Miles College.

Stan Murphy is vice-president of the Mathews Center. He is a partner at the law firm of Murphy & Murphy, LLC. Murphy also serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Alabama Law School, as well as a researcher for both the Uni-versity of Alabama’s Office of Academic Affairs and the Kettering Foundation.

Murphy was senior counsel in the Office of Counsel for the University of Al-abama System, senior counsel for International and Strategic Initiatives at the University of Alabama and was the academic coordinator for the University of Alabama Cooper Cuba Initiative. He was also a special assistant to the secretary of the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (1975-1977).

BOARD OF DIRECTORS


Sandy Gunter is treasurer of the Mathews Center. He is a partner in the law firm of Shields & Gunter, Attorneys.

Previously, Gunter was a partner in the law firm of Stephens, Shields & Gunter, Attorneys. From 1981 to 1987, he was a partner in the law firm of Stephens & Gunter, Attorneys. Gunter served as assistant to the president of the University of Alabama (1977-1980) and was an administrative assistant to the secretary of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (1975-1977). He is the former president of the Family Counseling Service Board of Directors and the Alabama Boychoir, Inc.

Dr. Robert McKenzie is president of the Mathews Center and a senior associate of the Kettering Foundation. McKenzie is also professor emeritus of New College.

McKenzie served thirty years in the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps as a reserve officer and is a retired colonel. He served as a resident faculty and as faculty, advi-sor and supervisor of prior learning in the External Degree Program in New Col-lege (1980-1997). He was executive assistant to the secretary of the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (1975-1977). He was the director of research for the Center for Public Law and Service (1977-1982) and was an ad-ministrative assistant to the president of the University of Alabama (1969-1975).

The David Mathews Center Officers and Board of Directors

Dr. Joffre T. Whisenton is currently serving as president of Joffre T. Whisenton and Associates, Inc.

Whisenton was president of the Southern University System and associate ex-ecutive director with the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Whisenton also held a joint appointment as professor and chairman of the Division of Education and Psychology at Stillman College and as a program associate in the Office for Student Development at the University of Alabama. He served as special assistant for educational policy to the secretary of the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (1975-1977).

Dr. David Wilson serves as the chancellor of both the University of Wisconsin Colleges and the University of Wisconsin-Extension. He is on the Board of Direc-tors of MDC, Inc. and the University Continuing Education Association, and is a co-founder of the Alabama Black Belt Community Foundation.

Wilson was vice-president for University Outreach at Auburn University. In addition, Wilson has been the associate provost at Rutgers University and was a program officer and director of the Office of Minority Programs at the Wood-row Wilson National Fellowship Foundation. He has won numerous fellowships, such as the Woodrow Wilson Fellowship and the Kellogg Fellowship.

Dr. Cathy Randall is chair of the Board of Pettus Randall Holdings, LLC. She also serves as chair of the Alabama Academy of Honor.

Randall served as chair of the Board of Randall Publishing Company and the di-rector of the University Honors Programs at the University of Alabama. She also served as the national president of Mortar Board, Inc., president of the Board of Directors of the Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame and director of Alabama’s Girls State. Randall has been a member of the Board of Directors of Mercedes Benz USI, the American Village, the Alabama Law Foundation, the Alabama Archives and History Foundation and the Tuscaloosa City Schools Education Foundation.

Dr. William Muse is president of the National Issues Forums Institute in Dayton, Ohio. He formerly served as a Lombard Fellow with the Kettering Foundation.

Muse has had a career in higher education spanning almost forty years. Dur-ing his career, he has served as chief executive officer of three major universities: the University of Akron, Auburn University and East Carolina University. From 1970 to 1983, Muse served as the dean of the business school at three different universities, including Appalachian State University, the University of Nebraska at Omaha and Texas A&M University. He was vice-chancellor for Academic Pro-grams for the Texas A&M University System.


Community-Based Research Internship ProgramT

O’C INTERNSHIP PROGRAM


he Mathews Center administers a communi-ty-based research internship program draw-

ing students from the University of Alabama, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Miles Col-lege and the University of Montevallo.

Started in the 2008-2009 school year, the Jean O’Connor-Snyder Community-Based Research Internship Program provides learning experiences in which the interns research the use of delibera-tive practices to develop an on-going community capacity to address common concerns.

Beginning in the 1970s, Jean O’Connor-Snyder was a cherished mentor to undergraduates both in school and in their subsequent careers. The Mathews Center internship program is an effort to extend her legacy and provide experiences similar to those of UA student interns in the 1970s who

served under the direction of David Mathews, then president of the University.

The Mathews Center views communities, not as groups with needs to be met by university-based experts, but as groups rich in capacity to address their community concerns. Students work with Alabama communities to develop infrastructure and habits that lead to more effective community decision making.

The interns are an interdisciplinary group, repre-senting majors in economics, finance, film-making, social work, political science, peace studies, jour-nalism and foreign languages. Their internship re-search projects explore the potential for delibera-tive practices in the fields of education, economic development, public health, arts and humanities, community media and religious communities.

Emmanuel Amido is a senior at the Uni-versity of Alabama majoring in global stud-ies and independent film through New College. For his internship project, Amido is assessing the feasibility of deliberative forums as a means of resolving dilemmas

in a culturally diverse community. As part of the research, he will be conducting forums with international students. Amido will also contribute his documentary film skills to various internship projects by documenting deliberations and forums for future reference.

Amido, who is originally from Sudan, but now lives in Memphis, Tennessee, is involved in the international com-munity at the University of Alabama. He served as a resi-dent advisor in the primary student residence hall at the University. Amido is an active member of the Swahili Club and Navigators, and participates in intramural sports.

Lucy Bennett is a junior at the University of Alabama majoring in economics. Bennett is researching the potential for using the arts and humanities in deliberative politics and is working closely with the Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts &

Humanities at Auburn University, PACERS, a non-profit as-sociation of rural Alabama communities and their schools, and others in the arts and humanities discipline to enhance deliberative practices. In addition to this, Bennett will be working with various arts-related projects to research the usefulness of art and community history documentation for more effective community decision making.

Bennett, who is from Gadsden, Alabama, is a member of Kappa Delta, the Honors College, National Society of Col-legiate Scholars, Alpha Lambda Delta and Phi Eta Sigma.

Lauree Blair is a sophomore at Miles Col-lege majoring in social work. Blair is work-ing closely with Peggy Sparks, who coor-dinates the annual Teachers’ Institute. She is involved in a yearlong effort to promote National Issues Forums in the Classroom.

Blair, who is from Birmingham, Alabama, has been in-volved with the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute since 2006.

John DuBois is a sophomore at the Univer-sity of Alabama majoring in political sci-ence and economics. As an intern, DuBois is working with fellow intern Will Thomas to support the Southern Growth Policies Board in hosting forums around the state

based on the SGPB issue map. DuBois is originally from Coatopa, Alabama. He also

serves as a resident advisor in Ridgecrest South Residence Hall and is an ambassador for the College of Arts & Sciences.

Cristin Foster is a senior at the University of Montevallo majoring in history. Through her internship, she is working closely with public middle and high schools to develop a curriculum for teaching democratic practices. Additionally, Foster is researching how American Village experiences can be incorporated into such a curriculum.

Foster is part of the University of Montevallo’s Habitat for Humanity campus charter. She is also involved with Cam-pus Outreach, and is a member of the University of Monte-vallo Honors Program and the Golden Key honor society.

Linn Groft is a junior in New College at the University of Alabama majoring in sustain-able international economic development. As an intern, she will be working with the College of Community Health Sciences, specifically collaborating with the Rural

Medical Scholars. Through this, Groft is researching the po-tential for using deliberative practices in public health strat-egies.

Groft is a member of the Blount Undergraduate Initia-tive and the Computer-Based Honors Program. She has re-searched the economic consequences of the proliferation of disease in developing countries. Groft is an Ethics and Social Responsibility scholar and plays a leadership role in both

Community-Based Research Internship Program


Apwonjo and the Alabama International Relations Club.

Alonso Heudebert is a graduate student at the University of Alabama at Birmingham currently working on his Master’s in Pub-lic Health, with a concentration in inter-national epidemiology. As an intern, he is researching the capacity for deliberation in

the area of public health.Heudebert, who is from Birmingham, Alabama, has a B.A.

in philosophy from the University of Alabama. Heudebert has been involved with Aprendo Contigo, an educational and recreational based program in Peru for children that are impacted by life-threatening illnesses.

Brittney Jones is a junior at the Univer-sity of Alabama at Birmingham majoring in neuroscience with a minor in chemistry. Jones will be exploring the possibilities for deliberation in public health issues.

Jones, who is from Montgomery, Ala-bama, is a member of the Global and Community Leader-ship Honors Program at UAB. Additionally, she is a tutor and mentor at a local elementary school in her community.

Kendra Key is a senior political science major at the University of Alabama. As an intern, Key is researching the leadership tactics that facilitated a smooth integration of the University of Alabama. Additionally, Key is working closely with Emmanuel

Amido in producing a documentary film on this topic.Key, who is from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, is a student chair

at the Blackburn Institute, as well as a Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility scholar. Key was the 2009 recipient of the Truman Scholarship.

Angel King is a junior at the University of Alabama ma-joring in political science, with a double minor in Spanish

and philosophy. King is researching those throughout the country who have institut-ed programs using National Issues Forums in the Classroom. From this research, she will design a pilot program for implemen-tation in a local Tuscaloosa school this fall.

King, who is originally from Montgomery, Alabama, gained a passion for improving the quality of education after working with several local community organizations that dealt with improving education for children in lower-income areas. King is an active member in the Blackburn In-stitute and is a resident advisor in Lakeside Residence Hall.

Anna Lloyd is a junior at the University of Alabama at Birmingham majoring in psy-chology. Lloyd is researching the use of de-liberation as a strategy for addressing pub-lic health issues.

Lloyd, who is from Fairhope, Alabama, is the service coordinator for the Global and Community Leadership Honors Program at UAB. Additionally, Lloyd is a USGA senator for the School of Social and Behavioral Sci-ences and Ms. UAB 2008-2009.

Sarah Massey is a sophomore at the Uni-versity of Alabama double majoring in his-tory and media studies. Massey’s focus is to explore the potential for engaging the media in the deliberative process, and she will be researching similar efforts by public

policy institutes to augment deliberation through various forms of media. She performs a number of writing and edit-ing duties for the Mathews Center.

Massey, who is from Cincinnati, Ohio, serves as editor of Mosaic, the Honors College magazine. She is also an Hon-ors College ambassador, and is on the committee of the Col-lege’s lecture series.

Jay Murphy is a graduate student at the University of Ala-bama currently working on attaining his M.A. in political

O’C INTERNSHIP PROGRAM


science. He is working with the Center in developing its technological needs. He will be researching the history of UA and the ef-fects of student leadership during the time of Dr. David Mathews’ tenure as president.

Murphy graduated from New College with a B.S. in digital media. During his last year of under-graduate studies, he developed an interest in the social sci-ences, specifically deliberative democratic practices and researching how an individual or a group can help a com-munity gain a sense of self-responsibility and self-efficacy.

Will Thomas is a senior majoring in eco-nomics and finance, with a concentration in public policy and law. He is working with business leaders and academics to research the role of businesses in the economies and communities of the New South.

Thomas, originally from Madison, Alabama, is active in organizations such as Apwonjo and Alpha Kappa Psi Pro-fessional Business Fraternity. He has served as a peer men-tor to Freshman Forum, and was the 2009 recipient of the William P. Bloom Award.

David Mathews Center Staff


Lane Busby McLelland is executive director of the Mathews Center. In this position, McLelland coordi-nates the various programs of the Mathews Center, as well as supervises the work of the Jean O’Connor-Snyder Community-based Research interns.

McLelland holds a Master of Divinity, as well as a M.A. in ethics, and teaches at the University of Ala-bama in New College and the Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility.

Lindsey Mullen is the community-based research program director of the Mathews Center. A recent grad-uate of the University of Alabama, she directs research and intern development for the Mathews Center’s Jean O’Connor-Snyder Community-Based Research Internship Program.

Mullen holds a B.A. in social justice, with concentrations in African studies and documentary film from the University of Alabama.

Lydia Atkins is the associate director of community-based research of the Mathews Center. Her main responsibilities include developing research pathways for deliberative dialogue in rural Alabama com-munities. She also directs intern development for the Jean O’Connor-Snyder Community-Based Research Internship Program, as well as serves an administrative role in the Mathews Center office.

Atkins, a recent graduate of the University of Alabama, holds a B.A. in sustainability in a global context.

Ellen Corbett is the events coordinator of the Mathews Center at the American Village. She spent 30 years serving in administration at the University of Montevallo, which included coordinating the Equal Em-ployment Opportunity Commission Office. Additionally, Corbett helped establish the Leadership Shelby County program, which serves community leaders throughout the county, and she was also coordinator of the program for 12 years.

Alabama Issues Forumsn communities across Alabama, people were given the opportunity to attend a series of fo-rums known as the Alabama Issues Forums

(AIF), which gave them the framework to discuss difficult issues with one another. The eight pilot communities included Elba, Anniston, Collins-ville, Chatom and Prattville (coordinated by the Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts & Humanities, Auburn University), and three com-munities in Birmingham (coordinated by the Bir-mingham Issues Forums).

From August 2008 to February 2009, three fo-

rums were held in each of the communities, with the focus being an issue within education, as framed by National Issues Forums Institute (NIFI) issue books. The issue books that were used in-cluded “Preparing Today’s Kids for Tomorrow’s Jobs,” “Too Many Children Left Behind: How Can We Close the Achievement Gap?” and “What Is the 21st Century Mission for Our Public Schools?”

The following photo spread reveals the atmo-sphere of the forums, as well as the response of the conveners and moderators, voiced at a June 23rd concluding meeting at American Village. n

AIF PILOT COMMUNITIES


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“In Collinsville, the general sense that they did have was that there seemed to be a lot of hope. A lot of them said that they got the sense that we can work together.”- Emerald Greywoode, DMC intern

Collinsville

Chatom

“Overwhelmingly, participants want more forums, and they got motivated ... There’s a lot of positive movement in all the communities.”-Jennifer Jones, forum moderator


“And one of the questions that we con-stantly asked was ‘who’s not at the table, and how do we get them here?’ And be-cause of that, we intentionally took that to the town of Autaugaville, so we could hear some voices of people who are of-ten not at the table. So I think what we heard was the voice of individuals who felt like they had concerns the whole time, and they had not been addressed.” -Yvonne Thomas, Prattville convener AnnistonChatom

Prattville

Elba

“I’m just fascinated with the whole pro-cess ... I think it’s invaluable for anyone to have the skill to be able to stand in front of the community and literally moderate the process of discussing critical issues.”-Rod Scott, AL House Rep., District 55


TEACHERS’ INSTITUTE


e aren’t doing a very good job preparing young people to take on the responsibilities of citizen-

ship. A recent report shows a majority of Americans failed a national test of civic literacy. And in 2002, a group of schol-ars, as well as the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement and the Carnegie Corp. of

New York, voiced a clarion call for the need to revive a richer civic education in our schools.

Alabama educators also have had concerns about the civic education of our students.

Birmingham educator Peggy Sparks has assembled an im-pressive coalition to counter this alarming trend. It includes

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“The teachers at the Teachers’ Institute learned the true value of serving as a mod-erator and understanding the dynamics of deliberation.” - Peggy F. Sparks

In the May 24, 2009 issue of The Birmingham News, David Mathews, president and CEO of the Kettering Foundation, and Bill Muse, president of the National Issues Forums Institute wrote a commentary on civic education in schools, in light of the upcoming Teachers’ Institute. The following is their commentary.


“I see so many times, [the forum] always gets to be organic and things begin to move back and forth, and the teacher stands up there and is transformed be-cause he says ‘I never knew this person had an idea about anything. [He] might have turned in a perfect paper every time, but he never said anything to me. He never had an idea to voice.’ And that’s the basis of the process that I think is valuable from having watched so many

of the youth forums that we’ve been doing in Birmingham.”

-Leon Evans, Birmingham Issues Forums Leadership Team Member

the American Village, the state Department of Education, the state Center for Civic Life, the city schools’ social stud-ies department, the local council of PTA, Miles College, the Ministerial Brotherhood and Honda of Alabama -- as well as neighborhood associations and public libraries.

This month, the American Village is the site of the nation’s first institute to prepare teachers to introduce students to the most basic of all democratic skills -- making sound decisions with other citizens to deal with critical issues. These issues range from those that affect students directly, such as curb-ing juvenile violence, to those that affect all citizens, such as protecting Americans’ health.

Deliberating to make choices is a skill that is not only used at election time and in juries but also is a problem-solving skill students can use in everyday democracy. Having the ability to work through difficult problems will come in han-dy when they are adults living in communities where citi-zens must join forces.

Learning to be a citizen involves more than knowing how a bill is passed or the role of the various branches of govern-ment. Young people need to learn how they can be effec-tive political actors themselves. Democracy isn’t a spectator sport. A veteran of the American Revolution was asked how the experience had affected him. He said it made him realize he was part of the sovereignty of his country. His citizenship wasn’t just a word; he had lived it.

Birmingham can be justly proud of leading the way to making citizenship a part of the life of every student.

For years, young people have had opportunities to de-velop deliberative skills in its classrooms, youth clubs and churches. These projects have used guides to public deliber-ation prepared by the Kettering Foundation for the National Issues Forums Institute. NIFI works with local organizations around the country to conduct deliberative forums in which citizens can learn about the difficult issues facing their com-munity and the nation, and express their views about the most appropriate action to take. Students in our schools are a critical audience for these forums, as their teachers use de-liberation to help them gain the skills they need to be effec-tive citizens.

We are heartened by this new initiative in Birmingham. It holds much promise for energizing the national conversa-

tion on educating young people to become active citizens. n


Faith-Based Communities DeliberateThe Mathews Center has worked over the past year with several faith-based communi-ties in exploring the capacity for deliberation within a faith community. As a result of these collaborations, the Mathews Center has learned that the desire for using the de-liberative process within faith-based communities is evident.

FAITH-BASED DELIBERATIONS

n the spring of 2009, the Mathews Center conducted sev-eral network exploration meetings at American Village in

Montevallo, Alabama. On April 16, 2009, the Mathews Center conducted a net-

work exploration meeting that looked into the potential for working with faith-based organizations. Led by Lindsey Mullen, an intern with the Jean O’Connor-Snyder Commu-nity-Based Research Program at the time, and now a staff member, and attended by representatives from various reli-gious organizations, the meeting sought to address the con-cerns of faith-based communities dealing with controversial social issues.

This effort grew out of the Mathews Center’s work with the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church (NAC-UMC) and its discussions regarding the Iraq War. The NAC-UMC was encountering difficulty in its an-nual meeting dealing with a resolution concerning U.S. pol-icy in Iraq. Under the weight of Robert’s Rules of Order and parliamentary procedure, portions of the Annual Confer-ence meeting were breaking down in confusion and increas-ingly polarized positions. NAC-UMC sought the Mathews Center’s help in framing the issue for thoughtful, all-sides discussions in advance of their next annual meeting.

As a result of this collaboration with NAC-UMC, the Mathews Center was interested in the potential for faith based organizations, which have regular study groups, to become users of tools for deliberative decision making. Such organizations face a wide variety of important issues rang-ing from church business all the way to local, state and na-tional policy decisions.

At the meeting, Mullen led a forum using the National Is-sues Forums Institute issue book “Life and Death Decisions: Who Decides?,” which is useful with groups who have nev-er engaged in deliberative decision making. Additionally, the content is quite applicable to faith-based groups. Not only do some denominations have policy positions on end-of-life choices, many clergy become involved in the issue when counseling families.

Following the forum, Chuck Vedane and Anne Wheeler, lay representatives of the NAC-UMC, shared with the group the work the NAC-UMC had already done with the Mathews Center to reframe their discussions about the Iraq War. In its continued work with the NAC-UMC, the Mathews Center has provided this group with previous research and framing concepts on the topic of constitutional change in Alabama.

In addition to Vedane and Wheeler, the other attendees ex-pressed similar interest in methods for naming and framing controversial social issues. The process of naming and fram-ing was of particular interest to many of the participants to help them confront the wide range of issues each organiza-tion is facing.

A general discussion of possible interest in deliberative work in the participants’ churches and denominations fol-lowed. All the participants of the meeting recognized poten-tial applications in their faith-based communities.

Whether it be in approaching specific church business de-cisions or if the tools are to be used in a broader scope, such as helping people work through deeply-rooted disagree-ments over time, the desire to use the deliberative process within faith-based communities is evident. n

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DAVID MATHEWSCENTER FOR CIVIC LIFE

P.O. Box 11018Tuscaloosa, AL 35486

www.mathewscenter.org

© 2009 The Mathews Center for Civic Life

Documents

David Mathews Center for Civic Life 2009 Annual Report