American Institutions, Society & the Public Good
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences was founded by visionaries who foresaw that the nascent republic would benefit from the expertise of learned citizens to guide its development, health, and integrity through whatever challenges may arise.
Today, the clarity of that vision has never been more evident. We find ourselves in a time of deepening divides across lines of politics, race, religion, income, and opportunity. The institutions we have long turned to for leadership and information are under fire, as trust in the media, government, commercial enterprise, and academia declines. Strong and responsive institutions and a healthy civil society can carry us through crises and are vitally important in their aftermath.
From these challenges springs an ever-greater need for innovation and reinvestment in America’s founding values and its promise. As the Academy’s report Our Common Purpose: Reinventing American Democracy for the 21st Century notes, we are experiencing an age of surging civic participation, “of communities working to build new connections across long-standing divides, and of citizens suddenly awakening to the potential of their democratic responsibilities.” It is in times like these that members of the Academy, through projects in the American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good program, combine their extraordinary and diverse expertise to strengthen the relationships between our national institutions, civil society, and the citizens they serve and represent.
Project
Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship
The Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship is a multiyear project of the Academy. The Commission launched in 2018 to explore the factors that encourage and discourage people from becoming engaged in their communities. The Commission’s report, Our Common Purpose: Reinventing American Democracy for the 21st Century, seeks to improve democratic engagement in the United States with a set of thirty-one recommendations that reach across political institutions, civic culture, and civil society to revitalize American democracy by increasing representation, empowering voters, making institutions more responsive, and reinvigorating our civic culture.
The Academy has committed to make significant progress on the recommendations by 2026, the nation’s 250th anniversary. In collaboration with champion organizations and leaders from across the nation, the Academy is hosting public events and targeted briefings, providing expert testimony and thought leadership, convening experts and practitioners for knowledge sharing and strategy development, creating op-eds and other earned media, and in other ways standing up and supporting the ongoing implementation of Our Common Purpose.
COMMISSION CHAIRS
Danielle Allen
Harvard University
Stephen B. Heintz
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Eric P. Liu
Citizen University
COMMISSION MEMBERS
Sayu Bhojwani
Women’s Democracy Lab
danah boyd
Data & Society
Caroline Brettell
Southern Methodist University
David Brooks
The New York Times
David Campbell
University of Notre Dame
Alan Dachs
Fremont Group
Dee Davis
Center for Rural Strategies
Jonathan Fanton
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Lisa Garcia Bedolla
University of California, Berkeley
Sam Gill
Doris Duke Charitable Foundation
R. Marie Griffith
John C. Danforth Center on Religion & Politics, Washington University in St. Louis
Hahrie Han
Stavros Niarchos Foundation, Agora Institute, Johns Hopkins University
Antonia Hernández
California Community Foundation
Wallace Jefferson
Alexander Dubose & Jefferson, LLP
Joseph Kahne
University of California, Riverside
Kei Kawashima-Ginsberg
Tufts University
Yuval Levin
American Enterprise Institute
Carolyn Lukensmeyer
formerly, National Institute for Civil Discourse
Martha McCoy
Everyday Democracy
Lynn Nottage
Playwright
Steven Olikara
Bridge Entertainment Labs
Norman Ornstein
American Enterprise Institute
Robert Peck
FPR Partners
Pete Peterson
School of Public Policy, Pepperdine University
Miles Rapoport
Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, Harvard University
Michael Schudson
Columbia University
Sterling Speirn
formerly, National Conference on Citizenship
Marcelo Suárez-Orozco
University of Massachusetts Boston
Ben Vinson
Howard University
Diane P. Wood
American Law Institute
Judy Woodruff
PBS
Ethan Zuckerman
University of Massachusetts Amherst
PROJECT STAFF
Kelsey Ensign
Louis W. Cabot Humanities Policy Fellow
Zachey Kliger
Program Associate for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good
Jessica Lieberman
Program Officer for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good
Abhishek Raman
Program Officer for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good
Peter Robinson
Chief Program Officer
Tony B. Shivers
Government Relations Officer
Betsy Super
Program Director for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good
FUNDERS
S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
Ford Foundation
The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
The Suzanne Nora Johnson and David G. Johnson Foundation
The Clary Family Charitable Fund
Alan and Lauren Dachs
Sara Lee Schupf and the Lubin Family Foundation
Joan and Irwin Jacobs
Patti Saris
David M. Rubenstein
Commission Publications
The Case for Supreme Court Term Limits, U.S. Supreme Court Working Group (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2023)
The Case for Enlarging the House of Representatives, Lee Drutman, Jonathan D. Cohen, Yuval Levin, and Norman J. Ornstein (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2021)
Our Common Purpose: Reinventing American Democracy for the 21st Century (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2020)
The Political and Civic Engagement of Immigrants, Caroline Brettell (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2020)
The Data Driving Democracy, Christina Couch (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2020)
The Internet and Engaged Citizenship, David Karpf (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2019)
Commission Meetings
Civic Culture Working Group
April–October 2023
The Academy, in partnership with Citizen University and the Aspen Institute’s Citizenship and American Identity Program, convened a working group to inform the national conversation about the centrality of a healthy civic culture to American constitutional democracy, build trust across lines of difference, and inspire a resilient civic faith for the twenty-first century. The working group developed a user-friendly publication, to be released in 2024, articulating a consensus on the what, why, and how of civic culture as a practice, including the norms, narratives, values, habits, and rituals that are reflected in a healthy civic culture.
Working Group Members
Eric P. Liu, Chair
Citizen University
Kristen Cambell
Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement
Sybil Francis
Center for the Future of Arizona
David French
The Dispatch
Sam Gill
Doris Duke Charitable Foundation
Ted Johnson
New America
Ben Klutsey
Mercatus Center, George Mason University
Mathieu Lefevre
More in Common
Peter Levine
Tufts University
Patty Loew
Northwestern University
Eunice Lin Nichols
CoGenerate
Suzanne Nossel
PEN America
Eboo Patel
Interfaith America
John Spann
Mississippi Humanities Council
Shanta Thake
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
Natalie Tran
CAA Foundation
Jose Antonio Vargas
Define American
National Service Public Opinion Research
Beginning May 2023
One of the recommendations in the Our Common Purpose report is to establish a universal expectation of a year of national service and dramatically expand funding for service programs or fellowships that would offer young people paid service opportunities. Increased funding for service opportunities will make them more accessible but will not necessarily foster a culture in which national service is the norm. For this reason, it is important to better understand the factors that motivate Americans to participate in service, as well as the barriers that prevent them from seeking out or completing service opportunities. The Academy, in collaboration with California Volunteers, America’s Service Commissions, and David Binder Research, Inc., conducted public opinion research between May and August 2023 on Americans’ motivations to participate in service. The research project included focus groups with young adults and parents of young adults from across the political spectrum. This work was followed by a large-scale survey focused on California and a parallel national sample. The goal of this research was to provide data-driven insights to help state service commissions to improve recruitment for national service programs, including information on:
- Barriers that keep young Americans from committing to service and/or recommending it to others.
- Benefits that most resonate with audiences for recruitment.
- Profiles of potential target audiences for recruitment.
- Examples of effective recruitment messaging.
The polling demonstrated that positive messages about service increase the likelihood to participate. The findings produced additional data-driven recommendations:
- Describing community benefits of service is more effective for recruitment than describing service opportunities as a national program.
- Key motivations driving young adults to participate in service include helping people and communities, earning money for college and health insurance, and acquiring technical training and job certifications.
- Key attitudes that increase the likelihood of participating in service include perceiving service as helping the service program participant achieve their goals and providing them with greater financial stability over the long term.
- A mix of testimonials and traditional messages is most effective to paint a full picture of the value and benefits of service.
In December 2023 and February 2024, the Academy collaborated with America’s Service Commissions to share data findings with leaders from fifty-two state service commissions and federal AmeriCorps leaders.
The Promise of Proportional Representation for Democracy
July 27, 2023
Virtual
Moving to a system of multi-member districts with proportional representation could end gerrymandering, reduce polarization, and help more Americans feel their voice is represented in Congress. However, a little-known 1967 law, the Uniform Congressional District Act, prevents this reform and locks the United States into a deeply flawed electoral system. The Our Common Purpose report recommends amending this law and moving toward a proportional system. In this virtual event, Our Common Purpose champions and others discussed why a growing body of experts believe this reform would strengthen American democracy.
SPEAKERS
Andy Craig
Rainey Center; CATO Institute
Steven Olikara
Bridge Entertainment Labs
Norman Ornstein
American Enterprise Institute
Alora Thomas-Lundborg
Charles Hamilton Houston Center for Race & Justice, Harvard Law School
Grant Tudor
Protect Democracy
Safeguarding American Democracy: Civic Literacy for a Secure Nation
October 5, 2023
Virtual
A significant number of today’s K–12 students will enter college and the workforce without the civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions that they need to fully participate in our constitutional democracy. Lack of civic readiness among young Americans undermines civil discourse, increases alienation and polarization, and makes us more susceptible to misinformation and disinformation. As a result, a growing body of civil society leaders and policymakers have been making the case that the lack of civic readiness among Americans poses a threat to our national security. At this virtual event, sponsored by the Academy and iCivics, Academy members and Our Common Purpose champions discussed the stakes involved in fostering our civic strength and explored promising solutions to promote lifelong civic learning.
Speakers
Danielle Allen
Harvard University
Louise Dubé
iCivics
James N. Mattis
Stanford University
America250 Cross-City and Context Sharing Meetings
October 16, 2023; February 16, 2024; May 9, 2024
In 2022, the Academy began convening representatives from organizations planning to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Participants came from museums, libraries, local history agencies, state humanities councils, and other organizations. This group has sought to identify both the opportunities and challenges that commemorating the 250th anniversary presents, especially at a time of increased division and polarization. In 2023, the group developed a set of principles to guide the strategic planning for 2026. These principles are “listen and dialogue; include; reckon, celebrate, and imagine; and experiment.” The Academy’s 250th convenings in 2024 have focused on identifying concrete examples of where these principles are being put into practice. These examples will be added to the project’s microsite at the end of 2024.
250th Initiative Leaders
Danielle Allen
Harvard University
Joseph Dunford
Adams Presidential Center
Jane Kamensky
Monticello
The Legislative Path to Supreme Court Reform
October 25, 2023
Boston, MA, and Virtual
This event, hosted by the Academy and the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate, celebrated the release of The Case for Supreme Court Term Limits, the final publication of the Academy’s U.S. Supreme Court Working Group. The event featured a panel of working group members and other experts who discussed the new publication, the benefits and challenges associated with establishing Supreme Court term limits, and the role the Senate might play in enacting such a reform.
Speakers
Akhil Reed Amar
Yale Law School
Kimberly Atkins Stohr
The Boston Globe
Charles Fried
Harvard Law School
Gabe Roth
Fix The Court
Patti Saris
U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts
A Discussion on Strengthening Democracy
December 7, 2023
Raleigh, NC
At a panel at the Council of State Governments’ annual conference in Raleigh, NC, Commission members Steven Olikara and Norman Ornstein spoke to a standing-room-only audience of state government officials about the Our Common Purpose report’s recommendations. They underscored the importance of expanding national service, reforming campaign finance laws, expanding the size of the House of Representatives, and strengthening civic culture.
SPEAKERS
Steven Olikara
Bridge Entertainment Labs
Norman Ornstein
American Enterprise Institute
Betsy Super
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Multi-Member Districts Working Group
April 2024–September 2024
The Our Common Purpose report calls for amending the 1967 federal law that mandates single-member congressional districts and winner-take-all elections and adopting in its place a system of multi-member districts with proportional ranked choice voting. In April 2024, the Academy convened a diverse, bipartisan group of political scientists, election law experts, advocates, and practitioners to explore the design choices and downstream policy questions that will influence how future implementation of this set of reforms might work. The working group will produce a report laying out areas where a consensus has developed regarding the likely effects of this reform on congressional representation–areas that remain subject to debate–and questions to be examined in the future.
Working Group Members
John Carey
Dartmouth College
Guy-Uriel Charles
Harvard Law School
Colin Cole
More Equitable Democracy
Andy Craig
Rainey Center; CATO Institute
Lee Drutman
New America
Moon Duchin
Tisch College, Tufts University
Michael Hanchard
University of Pennsylvania
Maria Teresa Kumar
Voto Latino
Didi Kuo
Stanford University
Jennifer Lawless
University of Virginia
Michael Li
Brennan Center for Justice
Jennifer McCoy
Georgia State University
Norman Ornstein
American Enterprise Institute
Deb Otis
FairVote
Maria Perez
Democracy Rising
Pete Peterson
Pepperdine University
Cynthia Richie Terrell
Represent Women
Charles Stewart, III
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Christopher Thomas
Bipartisan Policy Center
Grant Tudor
Protect Democracy
Philip Wallach
American Enterprise Institute
Project
Making Justice Accessible
Civil justice initiatives reach Americans far beyond the courthouse doors. In America today, we have legal information and services that can be delivered by lawyers, licensed practitioners, and trained advocates. A myriad of professionals can provide invaluable guidance and counseling; design new products and tools for judges, lawyers, and litigants; and generate free information to help people navigate legal systems on their own.
Since launching a two-year implementation effort in February 2022, the Making Justice Accessible project has interviewed providers, scholars, field experts, and thought leaders; convened stakeholder roundtables; and briefed congressional policymakers about the potential that civil justice initiatives have to alleviate precarity and empower American communities.
This work builds on the project’s publications focused on the challenges of providing legal services to low-income Americans. The first project, Designing Legal Services for the 21st Century, produced the Civil Justice for All report, which recommends targeted civil justice investments in financial and human resources, simplified procedures to reduce barriers and administrative strain, greater coordination and new partnerships across disciplines, and a larger field of advocates and legal professionals trained to provide effective and accessible legal help. The second project, Data Collection and Legal Services for Low-Income Americans, produced the Measuring Civil Justice for All report, which established a blueprint for civil justice data collection efforts and a research agenda for civil justice scholars, practitioners, and policymakers. The related Winter 2019 issue of Dædalus on “Access to Justice” is a multidisciplinary study of the civil justice gap, examining new models for the delivery of legal help. The project’s work is informed by the advice and insights of civil justice experts and representatives of courts, legal aid, pro bono programs, and private and public foundations; justice professionals; researchers; educators; and policy professionals who make up the civil justice ecosystem.
The final stage of the project is developing a national strategic vision that will inspire consequential collaboration to unlock funding and human potential to address the civil justice crisis. Every aspect of modern American life exposes us to legal systems. Yet the information, resources, services, and professionals needed to help Americans navigate those systems are not within reach for most. Although these interactions are common and most handle them on their own, the cost of getting it wrong is steep. It is essential, therefore, to understand, support, and partner with initiatives in the field getting Americans the help they need. In 2024, the Making Justice Accessible project will conclude with the publication of a national strategic framework outlining the opportunities and innovations already underway to make civil justice available for all.
Advisory Committee Chairs
John Levi
Legal Services Corporation; Sidley Austin LLP
Martha Minow
Harvard Law School
Advisory Committee Members
Kimberly Budd
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Colleen Cotter
Legal Aid Society of Cleveland
Ronald Flagg
Legal Services Corporation
Ivan Fong
Medtronic
Kenneth C. Frazier
formerly, Merck & Co.
Bethany Hamilton
National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership
Nathan Hecht
Texas Supreme Court
Wallace B. Jefferson
Alexander Dubose & Jefferson, LLP
Joseph Kennedy III
U.S. Department of State; Groundwork Project
Lance Liebman
Columbia Law School
Jonathan Lippman
Latham & Watkins, LLP
Lora J. Livingston
Texas 261st Civil District Court
Judy Perry Martinez
Simon, Peragine, Smith & Redfearn
Bridget Mary McCormack
American Arbitration Association
Margaret Morrow
formerly, U.S. District Court, Central District of California
David W. Oxtoby
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Rohan Pavuluri
Upsolve
Andrew M. Perlman
Suffolk University School of Law
Daniel B. Rodriguez
Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
Rebecca Sandefur
T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University
William Treanor
Georgetown University Law Center
Jo-Ann Wallace
National Legal Aid & Defenders Association Insurance Program
Diane P. Wood
American Law Institute
PROJECT STAFF
Eduardo Gonzalez
Program Officer for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good
Peter Robinson
Chief Program Officer
Betsy Super
Program Director for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good
FUNDER
David M. Rubenstein
Project Publications
Measuring Civil Justice for All (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2021)
Civil Justice for All (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2020)
“Access to Justice,” Dædalus, edited by Lincoln Caplan, Lance Liebman, and Rebecca Sandefur (Winter 2019)
Project Meetings
Advisory Committee Meetings
October 30, 2023; February 7, 2024; May 28, 2024
Legal Services Corporation Forum on Increasing Access to Justice
July 26–27, 2023
Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice, New York, NY
Program Officer Eduardo Gonzalez participated in the Legal Services Corporation’s event to highlight the impact of civil right to counsel programs across the country and the role of national business and civic leaders in elevating the importance of investment in civil legal aid for low-income Americans.
International Access to Justice Forum
October 11–14, 2023
University of California, Irvine
Program Officer Eduardo Gonzalez participated in the second annual International Access to Justice Forum hosted by UC Irvine’s Initiative for Inclusive Civil Justice and the Victoria Law Foundation. The event convened scholars, researchers, practitioners, and court and dispute resolution experts to discuss new developments and ongoing challenges in access to civil justice.
State Innovation Congressional Briefings
October 18–19, 2023
Program Officer Eduardo Gonzalez and Steven Goldblatt (The Suffolk Group) shared the project’s civil justice recommendations in virtual briefings with the Arizona congressional delegation. They also held nine in-person briefings with congressional offices in Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Minnesota.
American Workforce & Justice Summit 2023
October 25–26, 2023
New York, NY
Program Officer Eduardo Gonzalez attended the Responsible Business Initiative for Justice’s Workforce & Justice Summit, a gathering of U.S. businesses, policy experts, and campaign advocates. The event focused on justice and opportunity and emphasized the critical role U.S. businesses have in stabilizing lives after incarceration and unlocking opportunity for justice-impacted
communities.
Strategic Coordination in Justice Systems: Overcoming Silos and Building Collaborative Partnerships
October 31–November 2, 2023
Columbus, OH
Hosted by the American Bar Association, the event convened members of three committees vital to coordinating legal help in every state: State Access to Justice Commission Chairs, State IOLTA Programs, and the Legal Information Referral & Information Services Standing Committee. Program Officer Eduardo Gonzalez moderated a discussion with Judge Mark Juhas (Superior Court of Los Angeles) about coordinating across silos in justice systems.
Artificial Intelligence & Legal Help Focus Group
February 16, 2024
Stanford Legal Design Lab, Stanford Law School, Stanford, CA
Program Officer Eduardo Gonzalez participated in a focus group conducted by Margaret Hagan (Stanford Legal Design Lab, Stanford Law School). The focus group gathered civil justice experts to review and analyze responses to legal questions from generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) to understand the accuracy, effectiveness, and potential use cases for leveraging GenAI for legal issue inquiries.
Legal Services Corporation Access to Justice Symposium
February 29, 2024
Chicago, IL
Program Officer Eduardo Gonzalez participated in the Legal Services Corporation’s “Leap for Justice” celebration event, which gathered civil justice providers, researchers, and leaders from academia and business to highlight the impact of LSC’s fifty years of work in the field.
Making Justice Accessible Summit
March 7–9, 2024
House of the Academy, Cambridge, MA
The Making Justice Accessible Summit, the project’s capstone event, included over sixty experts in civil
justice, legal empowerment, academia, philanthropy, and corporate social purpose. The convening centered people-justice outcomes, highlighting the networks and developments in the field, elevating technology and innovation projects that reimagine the delivery of legal help, and raising attention to the roles of public and private sector actors in achieving justice for all.
American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on Legal Aid & Indigent Defense Board Meeting
April 9, 2024
Washington, D.C.
At the American Bar Association’s meeting, Program Officer Eduardo Gonzalez spoke about the project’s activities and plans to produce a national document highlighting effective strategies in the field as well as the outcomes of the Making Justice Accessible Summit.
National Legal Aid & Defenders Association/American Bar Association’s Equal Justice Conference 2024
May 8–11, 2024
Detroit, MI
Program Officer Eduardo Gonzalez and Program Director Betsy Super presented at the Equal Justice Conference about communicating the value of civil justice efforts to philanthropy.
New America Tech for Humanity Summit 2024
June 6, 2024
Arlington, VA
The Making Justice Accessible project team attended the New America Tech for Humanity Summit, an annual gathering of New America’s Public Interest Technology University Network. The participants included thought leaders from across sectors who discussed the role of data in securing human rights and dignity.
Project
Commission on Reimagining Our Economy
Economic uncertainty is a disruptive force in American life. In the United States today, too many families are unable to achieve the life they want despite their best efforts, too many communities have not benefited from economic growth, and too many Americans believe the economy does not work for people like them. These conditions not only harm lives and livelihoods, but they also sow distrust in our political, economic, and community institutions. The widespread belief that the economy does not give everyone a fair chance exacerbates tensions among Americans, threatening the nation’s social fabric and its democracy.
The Academy launched the Commission on Reimagining Our Economy (CORE) in October 2021 with the goal of rethinking the principles, metrics, narratives, and policies that shape the nation’s political economy. While policymakers and journalists often track how the economy is doing, the Commission seeks to direct a focus onto how Americans are doing, elevating the human stakes of our economic and political systems. The Commission builds on the work of Our Common Purpose, which acknowledges that economic conditions shape the practice of democracy but does not offer recommendations specifically targeted at economic issues.
The interdisciplinary Commission comprises scholars, journalists, artists, and leaders from the faith, labor, business, education, and philanthropic communities. Through listening sessions, data collection, and a commitment to cross-partisan work, the Commission has developed bold, achievable recommendations to build an economy that works for all Americans. The Commission represents a vital endeavor to reimagine the nation’s political economy and to enable opportunity, mobility, and security for all.
COMMISSION CHAIRS
Katherine J. Cramer
University of Wisconsin–Madison
Ann M. Fudge
formerly, Young & Rubicam Brands
Nicholas B. Lemann
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
COMMISSION MEMBERS
Daron Acemoglu
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Elizabeth Anderson
University of Michigan
Cornell William Brooks
Harvard Kennedy School
Whitney Kimball Coe
Center for Rural Strategies
Jane Delgado
National Alliance for Hispanic Health
James Fallows
Our Towns Civic Foundation
Helene Gayle
Spelman College
Jacob Hacker
Yale University
Tom Hanks
Actor and Filmmaker
Mary Kay Henry
Service Employees International Union
Kelly Lytle Hernández
University of California, Los Angeles
Megan Minoka Hill
Ash Center, Harvard Kennedy School
Reid Hoffman
Greylock Partners
Serene Jones
Union Theological Seminary
Julius Krein
American Affairs
Goodwin Liu
California Supreme Court
Maya MacGuineas
Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget
James Manyika
Google-Alphabet
Katherine Newman
University of California
Viet Thanh Nguyen
University of Southern California
Sarah Ruger
Stand Together
Ruth Simmons
Harvard University
Matthew Slaughter
Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College
Anna Deavere Smith
New York University
Joseph Stiglitz
Columbia University
Michael Strain
American Enterprise Institute
Mark Trahant
Indian Country Today
Kenneth L. Wallach
Central National Gottesman, Inc.
PROJECT STAFF
Jonathan D. Cohen
Joan and Irwin Jacobs Senior Program Officer for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good
Kelsey Ensign
Louis W. Cabot Humanities Policy Fellow
Victor Lopez
Program Associate for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good
Peter Robinson
Chief Program Officer
Betsy Super
Program Director for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good
FUNDERS
The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
The C&P Buttenwieser Foundation
Omidyar Network
David M. Rubenstein
Patti Saris
Commission Publications
Advancing a People-First Economy (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2023)
Faces of America: Getting By in Our Economy (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2023)
Commission Meetings
Americans and Our Economy: A Conversation about the Human Stakes
October 18, 2023
New York, NY
The American economy is in a unique moment. Since the pandemic, typical measures have shown an economy that is doing well: rising wages for low-income workers, declining inequality, and, through 2021, low rates of child poverty. Poll results, however, tell a different story. Many Americans feel that the economy is not working for them and are pessimistic about their future and the future of their children. Why do they feel this way? Why is a seemingly strong economy not working for everyone? What changes need to be made to foster Americans’ faith in a better future? One month prior to the release of the Commission’s final report, the Academy’s New York Program Committee convened to discuss these questions and to share what the Commission has learned to bring a people-centric economy to life, charting a path to an economy that works for the people who make it work.
SPEAKERS
Katherine Cramer
University of Wisconsin–Madison
Ann Fudge
formerly, Young & Rubicam Brands
Serene Jones
Union Theological Seminary
Nicholas Lemann
Columbia Journalism School
Release Event for Advancing a People-First Economy
November 9, 2023
Virtual
The Commission marked the release of its final report, Advancing a People First-Economy, with a virtual event moderated by David Leonhardt (The New York Times) that included opening remarks from Commission member and actress/playwright Anna Deavere Smith on the importance of reimagining a better economic future and the values that should guide that future. The Commission’s cochairs then described their theory of change, previewed the report’s recommendations, and provided insight into the process that allowed them to achieve consensus from such a broad array of Commission members. The Commission also shared its two other major products: Faces of America, a photojournal of median-income Americans in four communities, and the CORE Score, a county-level dashboard of American well-being, presented by Jacob Hacker (Yale University). The event marked the beginning of the final phase of the Commission’s work, which is devoted to outreach and implementation of the fifteen recommendations included in the final report. The Academy will be engaged in this work through December 2024.
SPEAKERS
Katherine Cramer
University of Wisconsin–Madison
Ann Fudge
formerly, Young & Rubicam Brands
Jacob Hacker
Yale University
Nicholas Lemann
Columbia Journalism School
David Leonhardt
The New York Times
Anna Deavere Smith
New York University
Luncheon Event about the 1944 GI Bill for Black WWII Veterans and Their Descendants
December 1, 2023
House of the Academy, Cambridge, MA
The Commission hosted a luncheon for Academy members that featured Commission member Cornell William Brooks (Harvard Kennedy School), who discussed a key recommendation from Advancing a People-First Economy: extending housing and education benefits to Black World War II veterans and their descendants who were previously denied these benefits. Because the 1944 GI Bill was administered at the state level, Black veterans did not receive the same access to benefits as White veterans. The conversation focused on the current racial wealth gap, why addressing historical injustices is important for building a better economic future, and legal challenges that might face the Commission’s proposal. Commission Cochair Ann Fudge spoke about how the recommendation complements other ideas in the Commission’s final report as well as the Commission’s planned outreach efforts around this issue.
Speakers
Cornell William Brooks
Harvard Kennedy School
Ann Fudge
formerly, Young & Rubicam Brands
The Geography of American Opportunity
February 27, 2024
Stanford Park Hotel, Menlo Park, CA
This event featured a panel discussion with Academy and Commission members Reid Hoffman (Greylock Partners) and Katherine Newman (University of California) about how place affects economic opportunity in the United States. Michael Tubbs (former Mayor of Stockton, CA) moderated the conversation, which focused on the widening gap between the richest and poorest communities. The discussion also drew on the CORE Score, the Commission’s dashboard to measure well-being.
Speakers
Reid Hoffman
Greylock Partners
Katherine Newman
University of California
Michael Tubbs
Former Mayor of Stockton, CA; End Poverty in California
Michael Tubbs (End Poverty in California), Katherine Newman (University of California), and Reid Hoffman (Greylock Partners) in conversation about the geography of American opportunity.
Economic Connectedness Working Group
Beginning November 2023
Advancing a People-First Economy calls for promoting economic connectedness, namely creating opportunities for people of different socioeconomic backgrounds to interact with one another as peers. Research from economist Raj Chetty and Opportunity Insights illuminates how economic connectedness drives upward economic mobility by expanding networks and shaping aspirations. The Commission also believes these relationships are vital ingredients in a vibrant and healthy democracy.
Since November 2023, the Academy has convened a working group to develop a resource that local leaders can use to build connectedness in their communities and institutions. The working group consists of practitioners and researchers from various fields and organizations, including housing, K-12 education, arts and culture, and civic institutions, among others. For its final product, the working group is developing a website to showcase best practices for bridging socioeconomic divides. The site will explain what economic connectedness is, make the case for why it matters, and feature case studies of communities and organizations that have fostered connectedness.
Working Group Members
Katherine Cramer, Chair
University of Wisconsin–Madison
Russell Booker
Spartanburg Academic Movement
Emily Dickens
Society for Human Resource Management
Julia Freeland Fisher
Clayton Christensen Institute
Anthony Flaccavento
SCALE, Inc.
Jessica Fulton
Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
Lynda Gonzales-Chavez
YMCA
Ann Helmke
City of San Antonio
Tonika Lewis Johnson
Folded Map Project
Mark Joseph
Case Western Reserve University
Eric Klinenberg
New York University
Theresa Kuchler
New York University; Opportunity Insights
Goodwin Liu
California Supreme Court
Sarah Oppenheimer
Opportunity Insights
Daniel Stid
Lyceum Labs
Johannes Stroebel
New York University; Opportunity Insights
Melanie Welch
American Library Association
Community Partnership Visas Working Group
One of the recommendations in the Commission’s final report calls for the creation of Community Partnership Visas (CPVs), a visa program that would allow local, state, and tribal governments to issue visas based on their unique economic needs. Such a program would aim to leverage the power of immigration to help communities stem demographic decline, fill critical labor market gaps, and revitalize their economies, all while marking the American commitment to welcoming immigrants. The Academy has established a working group to create a cross-partisan policy framework for CPVs. Though other organizations have issued proposals for place-based visa programs, none have answered specific regulatory questions surrounding their implementation. This working group–a cross-partisan cohort of immigration experts and scholars–will do so, with plans to issue a report in the fall of 2024.
Working Group Members
Cristina M. Rodríguez, Chair
Yale Law School
Gordon Hanson
Harvard Kennedy School
Douglas Massey
Princeton University
Cecilia Muñoz
New America; Welcome.US
Pia Orrenius
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
David W. Oxtoby
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Kristie De Peña
Niskanen Center
Matthew J. Slaughter
Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College
Stan Veuger
American Enterprise Institute
Tara Watson
Brookings Institution