ENACT: The Abraham Feinberg Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation

April 29, 2025

The students of the Brandeis University ENACT course “Advocacy for Policy Change” (LGLS 161b) came together April 29th from 10:00-11:15 AM in Alumni Lounge in the Usdan Student Center for the annual “Present and Defend.” They worked to persuade their classmates, other Brandeis students, and guests to vote for their bills, which are currently being considered by the Massachusetts State Legislature. Bill topics include healthcare, immigration, juvenile justice, and homelessness.

 An anthology of the student work will be published in the fall. View previous anthologies here.

April 22, 2025

ENACT is excited to announce the first-ever ENACT Student Summit took place on April 22nd, 2025 at 7:00pm-8:00 Eastern.  The summit brought together students from ENACT courses across the country for a virtual gathering to share insights and experiences from their civic engagement journeys.

Students submitted videos about their experience in an ENACT course, with the chance to win $500 prizes. Participants in the summit were also eligible for prizes.

April 22, 2025

ENACT students and alumni joined the annual ENACT Alumni Networking Night from 8:00-9:00 PM Eastern. A panel of accomplished ENACT alumni in a range of fields shared college, graduate school and career advice and made connections to help current ENACT students in their next steps.

Read more here.

April 9, 2025

On April 9, Brandeis University and the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge honored Madeline Leventhal '26 as port of the fourth annual ALL IN Student Voting Honor Roll. The 2025 ALL IN Student Voting Honor Roll recognizes college students at participating campuses who have gone above and beyond to advance nonpartisan student voter registration, education and turnout efforts in their communities. Leventhal is one of 232 students who mobilized their fellow students to make their voices heard in a historic election cycle.

Read more about Madeline Leventhal's recognition.

March 13, 2025

ENACT is excited to announce Cohort Four of the ENACT Faculty Fellowship: Douglas Cantor (Rutgers University - New Brunswick, New Jersey), Brian Dille (Mesa Community College, Arizona), Austin Harrison (Rhodes College, Tennessee), Jamie Palmer-Asemota (Nevada State University), Shawnika Perdue-Johnson (Pitzer College, California), Delphia Shanks (Hendrix College, Arkansas), and Emily Stacey (Rose State College, Oklahoma).

They are joining a national network of professors at colleges and universities across the United States teaching experiential courses based on the ENACT model. In those courses students engage directly in the state legislative process. Students learn to be active participants in democratic processes through connecting with policymakers and community organizations; conducting research and analysis; and informing public policy with evidence and expertise.

Read more about the newest ENACT Faculty Fellows here.

March 11, 2025

In two workshops at the annual DEIS Impact “festival of social justice”  at Brandeis, VoteDeis Campus Coalition students with support from ENACT helped their peers understand how to make a difference on issues they care about. In “‘Unobscuring’ the Complexities of Local Government”, several state and local officials shared messages to participants in which they discussed their roles and encouraged people to reach out, including a school committee member, a city councilor, a state representative, a state senator, and the Massachusetts state auditor. In “Organizing for Change: From Ideas to Action” two experienced Brandeis student and alumni organizers helped participants understand how to begin an initiative themselves or volunteer their efforts for ongoing initiatives on campus or locally. 

Read more about the events here.

March 4, 2025

On March 4th, ENACT hosted a virtual panel conversation with Mississippi House Minority Leader Robert L. Johnson III, Former Utah State Representative Jennifer Seelig, and Former Maine Representative Charlotte Warren discussing how the results of a presidential election can, and often do, affect their work. The guest speakers engaged in a robust question and answer session with students from ENACT courses across the United States. They shared valuable advice and insights about having an impact in the democratic process.

Read more about the disucssion here.

February 26, 2025

State Senator. State Representative. House Minority Leader. House Appropriations Committee Chairman. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman. House Education Committee Chairman. State Supreme Court Presiding Justice.

For many college students these titles are opaque, the responsibilities of these roles are confusing, and the people serving in these roles seem inaccessible.

It is a different story for ENACT Faculty Fellow Brian Pugh’s Mississippi State University students. In his ENACT course  “Community Service and Civic Transformation” they have been learning the ins and outs of the state legislative process, so that they can effectively engage directly in the democratic process. Recently, that learning extended to a visit to the Mississippi State Capitol.  “Experiences like this help bring government to life in ways the classroom alone cannot” says Prof. Pugh. (Pictured: Mississippi House Education Committee Chairman Representative Rob Robertson addresses ENACT students). 

“Visiting legislators at the Mississippi State Capitol provided an invaluable educational experience, offering firsthand insight into the workings of the state legislature. With a constitutionally weak Governor, Mississippi has one of the strongest legislatures in the country, and it is always a privilege when legislative leaders take time out of their busy schedules to speak with MSU students. In addition to meeting with lawmakers—such as the House and Senate Appropriations Chairmen—students had the opportunity to sit in on floor sessions and committee meetings. Observing these proceedings allowed students to witness state policy being debated and shaped in real-time, while also gaining a deeper appreciation for the context and civic importance of Mississippi’s legislative process. Experiences like this help bring government to life in ways the classroom alone cannot.”   - Brian Pugh

Read more about the visit and its impact here.

February 9, 2025

Join us on Sunday, February 9th from 2-4pm. The film is a portrait of Norma McCorvey, whose unwanted pregnancy led to the 1973 case that legalized abortion nationwide, Roe v. Wade; later, McCorvey switches sides to crusade as an anti-abortion firebrand; she tells her story in candid one-on-one interviews. Note: Snacks and drinks will be served!

Location: Skyline Commons

February 7, 2025

Curious to learn more about menstrual equity?! Join us on Friday, February 7th, 1-3pm to create care packages of period products for Brandeis students. Participants will also have a chance to learn more about the I AM bill, a piece of Massachusetts state legislation that works to combat period poverty.

Location: SCC Atrium

February 6, 2025

Join ENACT, the Women’s Studies Research Center, the ProChoice club, and other student groups for a multidisciplinary panel on Thursday, February 6th from 5:30-6:50pm. The event will feature three expert panelists in an effort to foster an engaging and informative discussion on reproductive health issues. Panelists include 1) Prof. Sarah Curi, JD, MPH, 2) Dr. Kristen Brewer, PhD, and 3) Dr. Marti Soffer, MD, MPH, Brandeis Class of 2010. Note: Food and drinks will be served!

Location: International Lounge (Usdan)

January 30, 2025

The VoteDeis Campus Coalition presented: “It’s Not All About the President: Engaging with Local and State Government" featuring Waltham Mayor Jeannette McCarthy, Massachusetts State Representative Thomas Stanley of Waltham and Waltham City Councilor (and Brandeis alum) Paul Katz '85 discussing their journeys in local and state government, the role and importance of local and state government, and how anyone can get involved.

There were opening remarks by Brandeis University Provost Carol Fierke, Assistant Director of ENACT and VoteDeis Coordinator David Weinstein, and a Q&A with the panelists moderated by VoteDeis members Rani Balakrishna'25 and Juliahna Falciglia-Mattes '28. 

Read more and view video of the event on the ENACT website and read coverage of the event from The Waltham Times. 

Hosted by the VoteDeis Campus Coalition. Supported by the Brandeis Student Union and an ENACT Educate and Advocate Grant from ENACT: The Abraham Feinberg Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation.

January 23, 2025

On January 23rd, Brandeis University welcomed back alumna Yanna Krupnikov for a talk titled "How We See Each Other: Perceptions Across the Political Divide."

Organized by the Politics Department with support from the Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences. Co-sponsored by ENACT and by the VoteDeis Campus Coalition.

December 10, 2024

December 9, 2024

12 ENACT courses in 11 states are confirmed for the spring semester. ENACT students from Maine to Wyoming and Minnesota to Florida – and points in between! – will be engaging directly with their state legislatures, and connecting with each other to support their learning. Stay tuned in the new year for highlights from these schools, and network-wide events! (Pictured: Brandeis ENACT students meet with representatives of community organizations during ENACT Advocacy Day 2024.)

Florida: Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University

Connecticut: University of Hartford

Maine: University of Maine

Massachusetts: Brandeis University (two courses)

Minnesota: Metropolitan State University

Mississippi: Mississippi State University

Nebraska: Nebraska Wesleyan University

Ohio: Cleveland State University 

South Dakota: Augustana University

Wisconsin: St. Norbert College

Wyoming: Laramie County Community College

See the full list of ENACT Schools. (https://www.brandeis.edu/enact/about/people/faculty-fellows/index.html)

December 3, 2024

ENACT supported nonpartisan voter registration and voter participation efforts at five campuses this year through the ENACT Your Vote initiative: Brandeis (in collaboration with VoteDeis), Siena College in New York, University of Hartford in Connecticut, University of Maine, and Utah State University.

At each campus ENACT Your Vote Campus Engagement Student Fellows worked to ensure students registered to vote and cast their ballots whether in person or absentee.

Read more about the ENACT Your Vote initiatives across universities here.

December 1, 2024

We are pleased to announce that ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation has been renamed ENACT: The Abraham Feinberg Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation to honor the late Abraham Feinberg.

“ENACT’s mission to teach college students about democracy through engagement with the state legislative process enriches the lives of our undergraduates, even as it continues to organize and educate at a national level,” said Provost Carol A. Fierke, PhD ’84. “This is a matter of great pride for Brandeis and we are honored to associate the program with Abraham Feinberg’s name and legacy.”

During his long relationship with Brandeis University, Abraham Feinberg served as a Brandeis fellow and as a member and chair of the Board of Trustees, and was awarded an honorary doctorate in 1961. He was a substantial force in shaping the University during its early years. Read more about Feinberg and the renaming of ENACT here.

November 19, 2024

Brandeis University has been recognized by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge (ALL IN) as a 2024 ALL IN Most Engaged Campus for College Student Voting. The ALL IN Most Engaged Campuses for College Student Voting recognizes colleges and universities for outstanding efforts to increase nonpartisan student voter participation. Brandeis University joins a group of 471 colleges and universities recognized by ALL IN for completing four core actions:

• Participating in the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge

• Sharing 2022 NSLVE Reports with campus voting data with ALL IN

• Developing and submitting a 2024 democratic engagement action plan with ALL IN

• Having a current signatory to ALL IN’s Higher Education Presidents’ Commitment to Full Student Voter Participation. 

November 7, 2024

From Nov. 7 through Nov. 11, 2024, 15 students will be invited to engage in a collaborative mural-making event with Claudia Bernardi.

Students interested in joining the mural project with Claudia Bernardi should apply here by October 7th.

This will be the second mural Bernardi creates at Brandeis, her first being the " “Waters Breathe, Too: An Anthology,” piece done in collaboration with the students of Prof. Toni Shapiro-Phim’s (CAST) “Introduction to Creativity, the Arts, and Social Transformation” class. 

Read more about Bernardi's artistry and activism.

October 23, 2024

October 22, 2024

Join the Brandeis Celebration of Voting featuring The Vote Goat! (Yes, an actual goat!)

Come to Fellows Garden (near the Blue Booths by the Shapiro Campus Center) between 11 am and 2 PM.

Take a “goatie” (goat selfie), get voter registration and absentee ballot support, sign up for election day and early voting transportation, and text friends and family to remind them to make a plan and vote.

Sponsored by the Brandeis Undergraduate Student Union, ENACT, The Dean of Students Office, and the Brandeis Politics Department.

Read about the Vote Goat and its impact here!

October 10, 2024

The Gender and Sexuality Center (GSC) teamed up with ENACT your vote to bring voter registration tables to their annual Coming Out Day event on Oct. 10 from 11am-2pm on Chapels Field. 

October 1, 2024

Join VoteDeis and ENACT Your Vote for a non-partisan vice presidential debate watch party, 8:30-10:30 PM Tuesday October 1st (broadcast begins at 9), in Olin-Sang 101!

We’ll watch the debate between Senator Vance and Governor Walz live on a big screen. There will be remarks by Brandeis Undergraduate Student Union Vice President Ria Escamilla-Gil, voter registration and absentee voting info and help, debate bingo cards – and snacks! All are welcome!

This is a nonpartisan event organized by the VoteDeis Campus Coalition and ENACT Your Vote, and funded by ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation. Cosponsors: the Brandeis Undergraduate Student Union, the Dean of Students Office, the Journalism Program, the Intercultural Center, the Legal Studies Program, Hillel's Mitzvote and the Samuels Center for Community Partnerships and Civic Transformation (COMPACT).

Read about the watch party here.

October 1, 2024

Claudia Bernardi is an installation artist, painter and printmaker whose artwork reflects the impact of war and its legacies. Bernardi designs and facilitates collaborative art projects with survivors of political violence, survivors of torture, survivors of sexual violence and with communities forced into exile. Born in Argentina, Bernardi was affected by the military junta (1976-1983) that caused 30,000 “desaparecidos.” 

In 2005, Bernardi founded Walls of Hope in a war zone in El Salvador, a community-based art, education, and human rights project that has been replicated in many countries around the world. Bernardi is Emerita Professor at the California College of the Arts.

Bernardi's lecture will take place from 2:20-3:40 pm on Oct. 1 in the Zinner Forum at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management. 

The keynote will be followed by a conversation with students interested in participating in creating the mural. Collaborative Mural-Making will take place Thursday, November 7-Sunday, November 11, 2024.

Bernardi's residency at Brandeis is facilitated by COMPACT and ENACT in celebration of the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life. She is the first of a series of individuals who will highlight the knowledge and experience developed by the Ethics Center and will expose the Brandeis campus community to spheres of activity that have only become more critical to our interconnected world over recent years.

Read more about inaugural Justice Brandeis Practitioner-In-Residence Claudia Bernardi. 

Read more about Bernardi's work at Brandeis. 

September 25, 2024

The Prevention, Advocacy, and Resource Center (PARC) partnered with ENACT to host a screening of the 2022 documentary “At Your Cervix.” The film follows sexuality educator A’magine as she exposes the traumatic practices that minimize consent and bodily autonomy in pelvic exam rooms. The documentary as a whole provides a deep exploration of the racism and sexism that continue to pervade the field of gynecology. The screening took place on Wednesday, September 25, from 6-8 pm in the Wasserman Cinema. A Q&A with the director following the screening.

Read more about the documentary here.

September 21, 2024

September 18, 2024

ENACT and the Women’s Studies Research Center welcomed the Bad Old Days Posse to Brandeis. In the wake of numerous political and ideological battles over the right to reproductive justice and health, the Bad Old Days Posse is a group of women who share their experiences of pregnancy in a pre-Roe v. Wade United States. Their stories shed light on the challenges and struggles faced by individuals before the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision, demonstrating their fears for a new future without the protections enshrined by Roe v. Wade. The Bad Old Days Posse is a part of the initiative Reproductive Equity Now, which is focused on expanding and advocating for abortion access across New England. These women shared their stories and reflections at the Liberman-Miller Lecture Hall in the Women’s Studies Research Center. 

September 10, 2024

At this non-partisan Presidential Debate Watch Party held at  Mandel G03 (in the Mandel Center for the Humanities) attendees watched the ABC-hosted debate between former President Trump and Vice President Harris live on a big screen.

There were remarks by Brandeis Undergraduate Student Union President Rani Balakrishna, voter registration and absentee voting info and help – and snacks!

This was a nonpartisan event organized by the VoteDeis Campus Coalition and ENACT Your Vote, and funded by ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation.

Cosponsors: the Brandeis Undergraduate Student Union, the Dean of Students Office, the Intercultural Center, the Legal Studies Program, and the Samuels Center for Community Partnerships and Civic Transformation (COMPACT).

Read more about the event here.

July 31, 2024

June 26, 2024

The spring 2024 issue of Public Service Review (Volume 5, Issue 1) exclusively features ENACT. 

Published by the Stennis Center for Public Service, a bipartisan legislative branch agency created by Congress in 1988 to promote and strengthen the highest ideals of public service in America, this journal is distributed to members of Congress, universities and colleges, and public servants in local, state, and federal government entities across the United States.

In this special issue:

• Brandeis alumni Elaina Pevide ’20, Vishni Samaraweera ’24 and Ravi Simon ’19 write about their experiences in ENACT Director Melissa Stimell’s Brandeis ENACT course “Advocacy for Policy Change” and the lessons they carry with them from ENACT.
• Randolph-Macon College student Wesley Gerschick writes about what he learned from advocating at the Virginia General Assembly as a student in Virginia Faculty Fellow Richard Meagher’s ENACT class.
• ENACT Assistant Director David Weinstein shares an overview of the ENACT program.
• ENACT Faculty Fellow Lynne Chandler-Garcia of the United States Air Force Academy shares her experience teaching an ENACT course, and the considerations involved in teaching about legislative advocacy at a military academy.
• Massachusetts State Senator Becca Rausch (Brandeis ’01) is interviewed by Brandeis ENACT students Dalia Moran ’24 and Arianna Jackson ’25 about her commitment to ENACT.
• ENACT Faculty Fellow Jennifer Seelig is interviewed by University of Utah ENACT student Tomas Cruz Villalvazo about her experience teaching an ENACT course.
• Maine State Representative Ambureen Rana is interviewed by Julian Ober, an alum of Faculty Fellow Rob Glover’s University of Maine ENACT course.

Read more and access the special issue.

May 8, 2024

New this fall, ENACT course “Legislation for Change: Research, Policy, and Social Determinants of Health” (LGLS121a) will be offered by ENACT Assistant Director of Research Charlotte Powley Mondays and Wednesdays 4:05-5:25pm. This course will examine state, local, and federal level policy making and reform through exploration of the five domains of the social determinants of health (SDOH). Students will research how to write a policy that relates to at least one of the domains of the social determinants of health: 1) economic stability, 2) social and community context, 3) healthcare access and quality, 4) education access and quality, and 5) neighborhood and built environment.

Learn more about this and other ENACT courses at Brandeis.

May 8, 2024

Brandeis graduating seniors Clay Napurano ’24 and Alaina Vermilya ’24 have been selected as the newest ENACT Student Delegates. For the next academic year they will facilitate engagement and interaction with ENACT students and alumni and faculty fellows around the country. “I’m extremely passionate about the power of young people's voices in shaping policy and thrilled to serve as a Student Delegate to help advance ENACT’s important mission,” says Vermilya. “I’m excited to be serving as an ENACT Student Delegate to help support local advocacy work,” says Napurano.

Read more about Clay, Alaina, and the other ENACT Student Delegates.

May 5, 2024

An op-ed written by Brandeis ENACT student Kristianna Lapierre ’24 was recently published by the Worcester Massachusetts Telegram & Gazette. In “Now is the time to pass I AM Bill,” Lapierre advocates to pass the I AM Bill, “An Act to Increase Access to Menstrual Products,” which would mandate that public schools, shelters and prisons to provide menstrual products to all menstruating individuals without stigma. “Massachusetts is a powerhouse for education, health care and equity within a current nationwide surge of attacks on reproductive rights and sex education, which includes menstruation,” writes Lapierre. “Still, we need to do more.” Lapierre studied this issue in the Brandeis ENACT classes “Advocacy for Policy Change” taught by ENACT Director Melissa Stimell, and “Gender, Justice and Legislation” taught by ENACT Assistant Director for Research Charlotte Powley.

Read Kristianna Lapierre’s op-ed here.

April 25, 2024

We are excited to announce that Claudia Bernardi will be the Inaugural Justice Brandeis Practitioner-In-Residence!

Hosted by COMPACT and ENACT in celebration of the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life, this series will highlight the knowledge and experience developed by the Ethics Center and will expose the Brandeis campus community to spheres of activity that have only become more critical to our interconnected world over recent years.

Claudia Bernardi will be on the Brandeis campus in November 2024. During her one-day residency, she will interact with students, faculty and staff through class visits, workshops, lectures, and other opportunities.

Read more about inaugural Justice Brandeis Practitioner-In-Residence Claudia Bernardi.

April 24, 2024

Yoni Kahn ’24 has been selected for the 2024 ALL IN Student Voting Honor Roll! This recognizes his work as an ENACT Your Vote Campus Engagement Student Fellow and his support of the VoteDeis Campus Coalition. Yoni will continue his work with ENACT Your Vote as a Brandeis University Heller School for Social Policy and Management graduate student next year. 137 college students were selected for the third annual Student Voting Honor Roll. ALL IN’s Student Voting Honor Roll recognizes college students at participating campuses who have gone above and beyond to advance nonpartisan student voter registration, education and turnout efforts in their communities.

Read more.

April 16, 2024

The students of the Brandeis University ENACT course “Advocacy for Policy Change” (LGLS 161b) came together April 16th in the Usdan Student Center for the annual “Present and Defend.” They tried to persuade their classmates, other Brandeis students, and guests to vote for their bills, which are currently being considered by the Massachusetts State Legislature. Bill topics included data privacy, gun violence, immigrant rights, juvenile justice, menstrual equity, mental health education, childhood poverty, pregnancy care, sex education, and water resources management. An anthology of the student work will be published in the fall. View previous anthologies here.

April 10, 2024

ENACT Faculty Fellow Rob Glover, has been named a 2024 Presidential Award winner by the University of Maine.

Dr. Glover’s involvement with ENACT was among the highlights that led nominators, the awards committee, and ultimately, the University of Maine president to choose him for this award, the highest faculty honor for engagement and service at the University. Nominators noted his involvement in ENACT since its inception, his participation in the 2019-2020 ENACT Labor Network, his scholarly work on impacts of ENACT, and his recent work to support the “ENACT Your Vote” Initiative.

“The achievements of all of this year’s Presidential Award recipients have brought long-lasting positive change not only for the students they mentor, but also many others in Maine and beyond,” University of Maine President Joan Ferrini-Mundy says. “I personally want to thank them for everything they have offered us, and look forward to seeing what they accomplish next.”

Congratulations Dr. Glover!

Read more.

April 8, 2024

Three Brandeis faculty and staff members traveled to Denver in April to discuss innovative Brandeis University community and civic engagement programs at Campus Compact’s national Compact24 conference “Now is the Moment: Higher Education Civic & Community Engagement as the Way Forward.”

(Pictured l-r: Weinstein, Kabrhel, and Sherman at the conference.)

David Weinstein, Assistant Director of ENACT presented ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation in a poster session, and Professor Rosalind Kabrhel of Legal Studies and Prof. David Sherman of the English Department presented on the emerging possibilities of undergraduate carceral studies programs, and shared the Brandeis Educational Justice Initiative (BEJI) as a case study for new models for higher ed in prison programs that emphasize diversion and re-entry.

Megan Moran, COMPACT's Associate Director, represented COMPACT virtually at Campus Compact's annual meeting of the affinity network  The Research University Civic Engagement Network (TRUCEN) where she presented on a panel with her sustained conversation group Equity in Community Engaged Research.

Campus Compact is a national coalition of colleges and universities, including Brandeis University committed to advancing the public purposes of higher education. It is the largest and oldest higher education association dedicated to higher education civic and community engagement.  Compact24 is the largest and most inclusive national conference focused on the role of higher education in building healthy communities and fostering a just and equal democracy. Sessions explored topics such as civic learning and democratic engagement, publicly engaged scholarship, practice, and teaching, community-engaged partnerships, institutional action, and anchor initiatives.

April 4, 2024

On April 4th students signed up for voting and civic engagement reminders with ENACT Your Vote at the ENACT Your Vote Day of Action, sponsored by ENACT Your Vote, the VoteDeis Campus Coalition, and the Community Engagement Ambassador Program. Volunteers tabled at the Shapiro and Usdan Campus Centers from 11:00 am until 3:00 pm to help people sign up for and to register and make a plan to vote if eligible.

Join Brandeis ENACT Your Vote to earn points!

April 3, 2024

Famed author Julian Winters came to Brandeis April 3rd for a panel discussion held in Rapaporte Treasure Hall, Goldfarb Library, followed by an educational booth fair. Book bans are ravaging the nation as censorship seeps across school districts nationwide. Most of these book bans target identity – race, religion, gender identity, sexuality – and have been coupled with educational censorship and so-called “culture wars” on humanity. With funding from the Maurice J. and Fay B. Karpf and Ari Hahn Peace Awards and the ENACT Educate and Advocate Grant, Julian Winters joined Brandeis professor Dr. Tanishia Lavette Williams, Florence Levy Kay Fellow in Racial Justice, Education, and the Carceral State, and student organizer Cameron Samuels ’26 for a panel conversation about the importance of the freedom to read.

Read more and view video of the conversation.

April 2, 2024

March 19, 2024

March 12, 2024

“We, the people, are the heartbeat of a vital and vibrant democracy. It works best when we engage as advocates for the causes that matter. We are the authors of democracy’s successes as well as its failures. So, what is effective advocacy?” ENACT’s Distinguished Legislative Mentor Jay Kaufman ’68, MA ’73, a former Massachusetts State Representative, shares some thoughts based on his 24 years as a legislator.

Read the article.

March 19, 2024

Please join us for a sexual health awareness and Healthy Youth Act advocacy event hosted by ENACT and the Boston Public Schools Office of Health and Wellness on March 19th! Write messages to current Boston Public Schools high schoolers with the support of MassNOW. Volunteers will be tabling from 11:00 am to 1:30 pm in the Shapiro Campus Center.

This event will also provide advocacy training and an opportunity to reach out to Massachusetts state representatives regarding the Healthy Youth Act.

For more information contact ENACT Assistant Director Charlotte Powley: CPowley@brandeis.edu

• Learn more from the CDC about condom accessibility programs.
• To learn more about the Healthy Youth Act, follow HealthyYouthMA on Instagram.
• Founded in 1968, the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Organization for Women (Mass NOW) is a multi-strategy grassroots feminist organization in the Commonwealth.
  
  

March 6, 2024

“Through their ENACT experiences in ‘Virginia Politics in Action’ my students learn one big lesson that everyone should learn: the barriers to civic participation are not always as high as we think. With some elbow grease – and maybe a little bravery – you can become an effective advocate and help influence the important decisions being made in our state government.

‘Virginia Politics in Action’ definitely involves action; my students get a crash course in state politics, legislative advocacy, and civic participation in just four weeks. There's no long buildup to a culminating experience. We're at the legislature on day two, and meeting legislators about our bill by week three. It's immediate gratification!

It’s exciting, both for me and for my students, to jump right in without too much of a net. And it works: the ENACT model is very well-suited for preparing students.”

Read more from ENACT Faculty Fellow Rich Meagher about his ENACT course at Randolph-Macon College in Virginia.

February 26, 2024

Brandeis Stories

January 18, 2024

"Make Your Vote Count! A Voting Rights Discussion" was led by policy experts from Common Cause, MassVote, and Brandeis: Prof. Zachary Albert of the Brandeis University Politics Department; Marisol Santiago, Policy and Organizing Director for MassVOTE; and Aaron Scherb, Senior Director of Legislative Affairs for Common Cause.

This event was funded by the ENACT Educate & Advocate Grant and the Brenda Meehan Social Justice in Action Grant, and was cosponsored by ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation, the VoteDeis Campus Coalition, the Brandeis University Student Union, Brandeis Democrats, and Brandeis University Young Americans for Liberty.

View a video of the conversation and read more about the event here

December 1, 2023

“Most of my students come to the university with deep passions, idealism, creativity, and brilliance. Yet they are overwhelmed by the immensity of the societal challenges we face. This can easily lead to stagnation and cynicism at this crucial juncture in their education. What they often need – and this course facilitates – is process-based knowledge and a safe place to develop complex perspectives towards change.

‘Urban Public Policy,’ adapting the ENACT model, was built around the idea that we can intervene at this beautiful moment to support students to build skills, reflective processes, and a sense of solidarity to both imagine and design what change can look like; and that we can hold both idealism and realism in that crucial work.”

Read more from ENACT Faculty Fellow Zachary Wood about his ENACT course at Seattle University in Washington State.

November 7, 2023

Join ENACT Your Vote – a non-partisan, web-based initiative to encourage voter participation and civic engagement at universities across the country. Join the Brandeis team: earn points, win prizes and encourage others to take action.

Sign up now and you will get updates and voting reminders automatically! 

Join the VoteDeis Campus Coalition – a nonpartisan group of students, faculty and staff supporting voting and voter registration at Brandeis: VoteDeis

November 1, 2023

In spring 2024 two ENACT courses will be offered at Brandeis:

Advocacy for Policy Change” (LGLS 161b), taught by Melissa Stimell will meet Tuesdays 9:35-12:25.

“Advocacy for Policy Change” (LGLS 161b), a Legal Studies course introduced in spring 2010, serves as the academic centerpiece of the ENACT program. Developed and taught by Melissa Stimell, Director of the ENACT, the course combines an investigation of the ethical dilemmas that arise in the process of lawmaking with hands-on advocacy work with entities seeking to reform laws or to propose new ones. The course concludes with “Present and Defend,” a major event for the Brandeis community at which the issues are presented and debated by the students.  Save the Date: the next “Present and Defend” will be held at Brandeis on Tuesday,  April 16th at 9:30 AM.

“Gender, Justice and Legislation” (LGLS 118a), taught by new ENACT faculty member Charlotte Powley, is being offered for the first time.

This class will explore both legislation and the implementation of legislation that impacts historically and presently marginalized gender identities. The course will emphasize these themes specifically through an exploration of menstrual equity. It will examine both the role of legislation itself as well as the advocacy and research that accompanies policy.

September 1, 2023

ENACT student delegates are appointed to foster civic engagement on their college campus and facilitate engagement and interaction with ENACT Ambassadors, students and alumni around the country. In addition, student delegates mentor and collaborate with members of campus clubs to help them become more effective citizen advocates at the state legislative level.

The 2023-24 Student Delegates are Brandeis alums Lucca Raabe ‘23 and Vishni Samaraweera, mentored by Elaina Pevide ‘20, who previously served as a Student Delegate. All three are passionate about legislative change, and supporting students around the country to develop their policy advocacy skills. They will be virtually visiting ENACT courses and hosting ENACT network-wide events including the annual ENACT Alumni Networking Night. 

August 15, 2023

ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation is pleased to announce a grant opportunity for Brandeis University undergraduate students!

ENACT Educate and Advocate Grants will provide up to $1,000 to support for student-organized events that focus on educating our community and advocating for positive change on important current public policy issues, such as healthcare equity, reproductive justice, immigration reform, criminal justice, voting rights, and a multitude of other concerns.

Applications will be considered on a rolling basis until 9:00 pm ET February 12, 2024.

Full grant criteria and application.

July 1, 2023

Hosted by COMPACT and ENACT in Celebration of the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life

The newly announced Justice Brandeis Practitioner-in-Residence Limited Series will highlight the knowledge and experience developed by the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life, and will expose the Brandeis campus community to spheres of activity that have only become more critical to our interconnected world over recent years.

On or around Justice Brandeis’ birthday of November 13, COMPACT and ENACT will host a practitioner whose life and work exemplifies Justice Louis Brandeis’ values of justice and truth as applied to community engagement activities, global or local. During the one-day residency, the visiting practitioner will interact with students, faculty and staff through class visits, workshops, lectures, and other opportunities. Each residency will produce an output which can be shared afterwards, for example a written document, short documentary film, a podcast, or an exhibit.

This limited series will be hosted from 2024-25 through the 2027-28 academic years. The inaugural residency will be in November 2024. Practitioners will receive a $10,000 honorarium. 

Deadline for nominations for the inaugural residency: April 1, 2024

Submit a nomination online here.

June 30, 2023

In June, ENACT welcomed 22 faculty members from colleges and universities across the United States to Brandeis for the third in-person ENACT Institute. ENACT Faculty Fellows teach their versions of “Advocacy for Policy Change” (LGS 161b,  the ENACT course that forms the basis of the program developed and taught at Brandeis by ENACT Director Melissa Stimell.

Faculty Fellows traveled from as near as Connecticut and Maine to as far as Alaska and Arizona. This third cohort of ENACT Faculty Fellows brings the non-partisan ENACT program across the country.

During the three-day institute new and experienced Faculty Fellows delved deeply into the ENACT model as they developed their courses, and they shared their own expertise. Discussion topics included how to teach an ENACT course in challenging political environments, how to empower students, and how to work with community partners. They were joined by special guests including Massachusetts State Senator Becca Rausch ’01.

See the full list of ENACT Faculty Fellows.

Learn more about ENACT 

June 30, 2023

January 31, 2023

The students of the Brandeis ENACT course "Advocacy for Policy Change" (LGLS 161b) recently met in January with advocates from nine Massachusetts organizations. Each advocate discussed their issue and the related legislation being proposed at the Massachusetts State House, encouraging ENACT students to focus on the related bill in their ENACT work.

Pictured: Brandeis ENACT students meet with representatives and leaders from Citizens for Juvenile Justice, Mass NOW (the Massachusetts chapter of the National Organization for Women), the Massachusetts Immigrant & Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA), Health Care For All, the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless, the Massachusetts Rivers Alliance, Reproductive Equity Now and the Massachusetts Coalition to Prevent Gun Violence.

Maia Lefferman '25 connects Brandeis University's VoteDeis Coalition, supported by ENACT, with college-based nonpartisan voter engagement efforts in greater Boston through her representation and work with Boston Votes. During the past few years, Boston Votes has held summits to gather the students, faculty and staff across the coalition to continue strengthening student and campus voter participation efforts.

April 21, 2022

During the 2022 Spring semester, Professor Adam Myers and students from his Public Analysis and Advocacy course visited Rhode Island State House. Students were able to meet and learn from State Rep. Rebecca Kislak as well as develop a greater understanding of public policy and advocacy at the State level. Professor Myers is a part of the Political Science Department at Providence College.

February 1, 2022

Ethics Center Director Melissa Stimell, with Brandeis graduate student Kaitie Chakoian and Brandeis alum 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.

Read the full report

January 24, 2022

"Student-to-Student Support: The ENACT Student Delegates," ENACT Student Delegates Elaina Pevide ’20 and Alison Cantor ’22 explore new ways of strengthening ties between ENACT classes.

January 1, 2022

Voter Participation Earns Brandeis National Gold Seal Recognition

Seventy percent of Brandeis University students who were eligible voted in the 2020 presidential election, earning the University a Gold Seal from the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, a national, nonpartisan initiative of Civic Nation, which strives for a more inclusive democracy. The work to achieve this milestone – an increase of 13 percent from the previous presidential election – was spearheaded by the VoteDeis Campus Coalition, organized by Leigh Swigart and David Weinstein of the Ethics Center in collaboration with the Office of the Dean of Students. VoteDeis is a nonpartisan initiative that since 2018 has brought together students, staff and faculty to coordinate, plan, and share information and resources for voter registration and participation.

ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation expands to all 50 states with its first virtual institute.

October 20, 2020

The Ethics Center's Leigh Swigart and David Weinstein spoke with The Justice about their role in the formation of the VoteDeis coalition, a nonpartisan campus initiative dedicated to ensuring all eligible students are registered and have a plan to vote.

October 6, 2020

The ENACT program at Brandeis University organizes nonpartisan Brandeis campus coalition supporting voter registration and participation.

September 15, 2020

Brandeis students Hangyu Du ’21 and Nicole (Huiyan) Zhang ’21 create enactnetwork.org, a custom digital resource sharing platform for the national ENACT network, with support from a grant from the New York-based Teagle Foundation.

March 10, 2020

The forum at Brandeis discussed of the challenges and opportunities for young people in politics, and the politics and political advocacy careers of four young state legislators: Connecticut state Rep. Quentin Phipps, Maine state Rep. Harold "Trey" Stewart III, Massachusetts state Sen. Diana DiZoglio and Massachusetts state Rep. Maria Duaime Robinson.

March 9, 2020

The panel, "Voting and Democracy in 2020 and Beyond," featured a discussion by Boston City Councilor Lydia Edwards and Massachusetts state Sen. Becca Rausch ’01 on voter engagement, access and suppression.

March 5, 2020

In the seminar "Civic Engagement in Action: Citizens and Policy Advocacy," Associate Professor Stella Rouse at the University of Maryland split students into teams to choose, study and advocate for specific bills now under consideration in Annapolis.

August 28, 2019

ENACT Faculty Fellow Candis Watts Smith was quoted in the New York Times opinion piece "We Aren't Seeing White Support for Trump for What It Is."

August 7, 2019

Three students from the University of Maine will join students from three states to join the national pilot program of the ENACT Labor Network to engage with lawmakers and study policy and advocacy on state and national levels.

May 28, 2019

"Brandeisians Leading Through Legislation" looks at the ENACT program and student participation in classes and events.

May 17, 2019

"We are delighted to support expansion of the ENACT program," said Andrew Delbanco, president of the Teagle Foundation, whose $350,000 gift will make the expansion possible. "Helping young people to understand and engage in deliberative democracy is an urgent task, and Brandeis is showing a way forward."

April 8, 2019

Massachusetts State Senators Diana DiZoglio and Cindy Friedman and Kentucky State Representative Attica Scott discussed their careers in politics and political advocacy, as well as their perspectives on political engagement — particularly at the state level — in conversation with the students from ENACT courses around the United States.

April 5, 2019

ENACT has affiliated with the CivXNow coalition, a task foce that aims to prepare youth across America to be active participants of civic life. They support civic education through advocacy and investment. ENACT joins a cohort of over 100 member organizations, academic and research institutions, and other supporters from across the political spectrum.

March 22, 2019

ENACT has been awarded a Multi-Institutional Innovation Project grant by Bringing Theory to Practice. The award will support ENACT's work engaging undergraduates across the Unites States directly in the process of state legislative change.

February 25, 2019

ENACT students from Brandeis and the University of Louisville participated in a conversation with Massachusetts state Sen. and Senate Pro Tempore Will Brownsberger (D-Suffolk/Middlesex) regarding the role of committees in the legislative process. The students in Kentucky joined the class, which took place at Brandeis live via Zoom.

February 13, 2019

Students discussed the bills they are working on this semester, gained insight into where these bills stand in the legislative process and discussed how they might help move the bills forward.

November 27, 2018

In a recent Urban Affairs Review article, Mead discussed his graduate-level policy course at Cleveland State University, which requires students to lobby on a public-policy issue, and recognizes ENACT as a similar opportunity for undergraduate students.

September 12, 2018

ENACT congratulates Smith, an assistant professor of public policy at the University of North Carolina, and co-editor Christina M. Greer of Fordham University on the publication of "Black Politics in Transition: Immigration, Suburbanization and Gentrification" (Routledge).

August 9, 2018

ENACT congratulates Rouse, an associate professor of government and politics at the University of Maryland, and co-editor Ashley D. Ross of Texas A&M University on the publication of "The Politics of Millennials: Political Beliefs and Policy Preferences of America's Most Diverse Generation" (University of Michigan Press).

July 24, 2018

Sage Rosenthal ’19 reflects on how ENACT prepared her for a Capitol Hill congressional internship.

July 16, 2018

Myeisha Boyd, Marian Gardner, Mark Hickey and Miranda Robert found a lot to like about their year as ENACT student delegates.

ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation is happy to announce the second cohort of ENACT Faculty Fellows. The newest 13 faculty fellows hail from colleges and universities in or near the state capitals of Alabama, California, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon and Pennsylvania.

This cohort of fellows joins a thriving national network of 16 faculty fellows across the United States who are teaching new courses or enhancing existing courses that engage students in hands-on study and work related to state-level legislation. Fellows will advance this work together, as all 29 fellows learn from one another's pedagogy and sharing in each other's successes.

Gail Miller reflects on her experiences in Faculty Fellow Kathleen Cole's ENACT course in spring 2017.

"I had a rather limited understanding of politics and democratic institutions when I enrolled in the Advocacy for Policy Change course in spring 2017; and the extent of my political participation was voting every few years. Before taking this class, I was unaware that there are many other ways to communicate my preferences to elected officials. I believed if an election did not turn out the way I hoped, I was left to hope someone 'better' got elected next time.

"Since taking Advocacy for Policy Change, I have a much better understanding of how my state legislature functions, who the representatives are, how to access information about legislation important to me, and how to effectively communicate my preferences to the appropriate political actors. I also learned how to find local advocacy groups working on the issues I am interested in, which enabled me to build meaningful relationships with like-minded people, furthered my education on how to be an involved citizen, and further amplified my political voice."

In August 2017, more than 5,000 state legislators, legislative staff, government officials, business representatives, educators and others interested in public policy from across the United States and abroad gathered in Boston for the annual Summit of the National Conference of State Legislatures. And ENACT was there. ENACT representatives met with legislators from states that currently host ENACT courses, as well as with others who are interested in supporting the ENACT model of engaging young people in state-level legislative change based on a shared commitment to knowledge, cooperation, justice and integrity.

"ENACT offers the promise of inspiring and supporting students across the nation to become engaged citizens, even as they inform and empower their own legislatures," said NCSL Executive Director William T. Pound in an endorsement letter.