ENACT Research
For “Transforming the Civic Engagement of Future Generations: A Pilot Evaluation of the Impact of the ENACT Course on Alumni Civic Engagement and Career Trajectories” (2022) ENACT Director Melissa Stimell, with then Brandeis graduate student Kaitie Chakoian and ENACT Assistant Director of Research Charlotte Powley, PhD, surveyed and interviewed alumni from 10 years of the Brandeis ENACT Advocacy for Policy Change course (LGLS 161b), which was developed by Stimell and has been taught by her since 2011.
This course is the model for the Ethics Center’s national, 50-state program ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation.
The results from this ENACT Pilot Evaluation Report shows the impact of Ethics Center’s ENACT course on alumni civic engagement and career trajectories.
Among the conclusions:
ENACT alumni have high levels of political efficacy. They feel well-qualified to engage with the political process and believe that doing so can have an impact on political outcomes. As a result, they are much more civically engaged than the average U.S. resident. They vote at substantially higher rates and engage in various other ways. ENACT alumni retain the knowledge they learned in the class about the political process, even years after completing it. They also retain skills (speaking and writing clearly, working effectively with others, and evaluating data sources) that have helped them in their professional work — whether that work is policy-related or completely unrelated. In addition to these skills, ENACT alumni credit the networks they developed and the mentorship of ENACT faculty with the trajectories their careers have taken since leaving Brandeis.
The ENACT National Evaluation Survey revealed that ENACT alumni are confident in their political efficacy. Respondents indicated that they think they are better informed about politics and government than most people (84%), and feel they could do as good a job in public office as most other people (75%). The majority are interested in politics (86%) and consider themselves to be politically active (72%). Over three-quarters of participating ENACT students believe that they personally can influence politics or policy in their communities and states.
Survey participants credited the ENACT course with building skills that hold value in their professional careers. Over 83% believe that the ENACT course contributed to their skill in working with others. 79% indicated that the ENACT course helped develop their writing skills and 76% believe it helped develop their ability to speak clearly and effectively.
Volume Two of “Transformations Through Civic Engagement: A National Evaluation of the Impact of the ENACT Course on Student Attitudes, Knowledge, and Behavior” (2024) describes the impact of ENACT courses on student attitudes, knowledge, and behavior.
The report is derived from survey data from students who participated in ENACT courses from fall 2023 through spring 2024 (a total of 101 participants). The survey consists of the following sections: 1) Engagement, 2) Knowledge, 3) Efficacy, 4) Civic Action, 5) Voting Behavior, 6) Tolerance/Diversity, 7) Skills/Competencies, 8) College Experience, 9) Values, 10) Demographic questions.
Students who complete an ENACT course express having strong political efficacy. For example, 90% of survey respondents indicated that they know enough to participate in politics while over three-quarters believe they can personally influence politics or policy in their communities or states. An even higher percentage, 77%, feel they could do as good a job in public office as most other people, and 79% indicated that they think they are better informed about politics and government than most people.
Students who complete an ENACT course are also engaged in social, civic, and political activity. Students who completed the survey shared that within the past 12 months, 73% attended meetings related to politics and 72% signed a petition. In addition to impacting students' political efficacy and engagement, ENACT courses help students develop critical and translatable professional skills. For example, participants reflected that their ENACT coursework contributed to their communication skills, with a majority of respondents (79%) indicating that the course helped to improve their writing skills and 75% reported that the course enhanced their ability to speak clearly and effectively.