Healey-Driscoll Administration Celebrates Civic Learning Week, Highlights MA250 “Bold Stories, Bright Legacies” Student Initiative

Healey-Driscoll Administration Celebrates Civic Learning Week, Highlights MA250 “Bold Stories, Bright Legacies” Student Initiative

K-12 students invited to submit creative projects highlighting Massachusetts revolutionaries; 

top submissions to be displayed at the State House

 

BOSTON – Governor Maura Healey has declared March 9-13, 2026, as Civic Learning Week in Massachusetts, reaffirming the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s commitment to high-quality civics education and student engagement.  

 

As part of Civic Learning Week, the administration is also highlighting the “Massachusetts Revolutionaries: Bold Stories, Bright Legacies” project, a MA250 a statewide student engagement opportunity connected to Massachusetts’ commemoration of America’s 250th anniversary.  

 

“Massachusetts has always played a central role in the story of our democracy,” said Governor Healey. “Civic Learning Week is about ensuring every student has access to a high-quality education that prepares them to think critically, get involved in their communities, and make their voices heard.” 

 

“Strong civic education helps students understand not just how government works, but how they can contribute to their communities,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “As we approach America’s 250th anniversary, initiatives like MA250’s ‘Bold Stories, Bright Legacies’ invite students to connect our revolutionary history with the responsibilities of citizenship today.” 

 

Through the Massachusetts Revolutionaries: Bold Stories, Bright Legacies initiative, K–12 public school students across Massachusetts are invited to submit creative projects that tell the story of the most important revolutionary in Massachusetts history. Students are encouraged to conduct research and use their talents — from essays and poetry to artwork, video or multimedia presentations — to bring their chosen revolutionary’s story to life. Selected top submissions will be displayed at the State House. 

 

“Students across Massachusetts are taking part in hands-on civic learning experiences that challenge them to research, collaborate and propose solutions to real-world issues,” said Acting Education Secretary Amy Kershaw. “Through Civic Learning Week and the MA250 initiative, we are empowering young people to see themselves as active participants in shaping the Commonwealth’s future.” 

 

“In Massachusetts, we want students to be prepared for college, careers and civic life,” said Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Pedro Martinez. “DESE supports Massachusetts Civics Projects Showcases and Student Government Day to teach civic engagement and discourse, and I'm glad to see MA250 call attention to the importance of civic learning." 

 

In developing their projects, students are encouraged to consider questions such as:  

·       How do you define ‘revolutionary’? How does your featured revolutionary meet that definition? 

·       What are the different ways to revolutionize a society? What does a revolution look like in technology, politics and government, society, and beyond? 

·       Who are the revolutionaries whose stories haven’t been as widely told? If your revolutionary is widely known, what made them so famous? Are there any “new” parts of their story that you can tell? 

·       How does knowing about your chosen revolutionary help us understand who we are as Massachusetts today, and where we should go in the future? 

 

"Ever since 2018 and the introduction of new state standards in Social Studies, Massachusetts has been a national leader in civic education,” said Harvard Graduate School of Education’s Democratic Knowledge Project Director Danielle Allen. “It's terrific to see the Healey-Driscoll administration elevating that leadership and tapping into the remarkable talents of our students to energize our storytelling about democracy."