School of Public Administration Awarded AmeriCorps Grant to Study Youth Civic Engagement in the Heartland

Researchers from the University of Nebraska Omaha’s (UNO) School of Public Administration in the College of Public Affairs and Community Service have been awarded a grant of $346,080 from AmeriCorps to continue their studies on youth civic engagement and mobility in the Heartland.

Led by Associate Professor Jodi Benenson, Ph.D., the "Civic Mobility in the Heartland" project seeks to understand how young people ages 18-25 in the Midwest observe, participate in, and learn about civic engagement over time.

“Understanding the ways young people in this region of the United States connect to and engage with civic opportunities is more important than ever,” said Benenson.

The support from AmeriCorps will allow the Civic Mobility in the Heartland project to continue its work, which includes a team of 12 student research assistants conducting interviews with over 100 young people across the Midwestern United States including North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, and Minnesota.

“This project represents an important effort recognizing young people as civic leaders and participants in civic life beyond the voting booth while also utilizing the talents of young people as researchers to help ensure that our findings are emulating their voices,” said Monica Lea a doctoral candidate in the School of Public Administration and member of the research team.

The Civic Mobility in Heartland project began in 2022 as a result of AmeriCorps' support for the initiative. Since this time, the research team has presented findings in academic and community settings, most recently, the ARNOVA/Independent Sector 13th Symposium on Public Policy for Nonprofits. This month, members of the research team will serve as the closing plenary for the Seed Coalition’s Civic Action Academy, where the group will share study findings and engage young people in a participatory research activity. The team has plans to continue sharing their findings in published articles for both academic journals and popular presses.

Beyond this, the team plans on holding a Heartland Civic Summit on March 6, 2025 at UNO. If young people in the region ages 18-25 are interested in participating in this research, they can email the research team at civicresearch@unomaha.edu.

AmeriCorps is an independent federal agency that connects a network of local, state, and national service programs aimed at addressing community needs in areas such as education, the environment, public safety, health, and homeland security.