Coordinated by the College of Liberal Arts and the David Mathews Center for Civic Life, the Living Democracy program teaches students how to be citizens who engage in civic issues effectively. It is a living and learning experience where students live in a small town and immerse themselves in the structure and problems of that community.
Auburn professors Nan Fairley and Mark Wilson wrote a book about Auburn’s Living Democracy Program.
“The question of the book is, 'What does it mean to move beyond a simple act of service?'" Fairley, the project's founder, said. "It’s more than volunteering once at a food bank; it is being actively engaged.”
The book will chronical the project so far and will include blog entries written by student participants.
“Living Democracy started with the first group in communities [in] 2010, and since that time, we have
Fairley said the students learn to be citizens in those communities and what it takes to improve life there by attending local meetings and understanding the process more thoroughly.
The successful program has been written about in the Higher Education Exchange and the Chronicle of Higher Education. The book will go beyond explaining the parameters and value of the educational experience but give readers an understanding of what these students experienced
“We have been surprised about the ability of students to be adventurous in the community," Wilson, director of Civic Learning Initiatives in the College of Liberal Arts, said. "Undergraduate students are curious about the community relationships that exist. The students that participate are very willing to live outside of their comfort zone.”
Wilson said the project's success hinged on the student's willingness to participate with an open mind and be aware that they do not have all the answers.
“The program is not defined as a service summer," Wilson said. "These are undergraduate students. We are not sending them out to do community service that fixes the communities; they are there to learn lessons of civic responsibility from the communities.”
Wilson said one of his hopes for the book is that the students and the communities would be proud of seeing their stories presented and that future students who participate will have this as a resource for what they will encounter in the field.
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