ANNUAL REPORT 2017
ON THE RISE:
5 MILLION STUDENTS REACHED
CIVIC
EDUCATION
Dear Friends of iCivics,
The old adage goes that politics is not a spectator sport. In this time of polarization and division we must renew our civic commitment. We need our citizens, young and old, to be part of the political process,
unequal for students of lesser means. Our challenge is monumental...
to be engaged in our communities, in our democracy.
but so is iCivics’ achievement today in braving it.
“Citizenship is a gift” remarked Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, our founder.
We are now a scaled solution grounded in innovation, grit, and deep
“And it starts well before one votes.” Such words deserve reflection.
consideration for the needs of teachers. Our model is successful with
It is now 230 years since our Constitution – our republican pact – was
educators because we address a fundamental need in our field: high-
formed and signed. Our society is a free, open, and pluralistic one;
quality, non-partisan, and inspiring civic education. For free.
supreme power resides in its citizens. Truly, there is nothing obvious
iCivics is at a turning point. Last year’s election, in all of its surprise
nor common about this pact. Young adults will soon be tasked to take
and fervent spirit, brought teachers in droves to our gaming platform.
up the mantle of our republic. It is our responsibility to educate and
Site traffic surged because teachers were pressed to find a safe way –
prepare them to make use of this exceptionally precious gift.
a deeply inspiring way – to teach the Electoral College, the presidency,
iCivics began as an idea, some 10 years ago, to tackle a dangerous
and the issues that mattered without getting caught up in the
and pressing reality: many young people were growing ignorant and
political turmoil.
unconcerned about their government. American civic education
The result: 5,250,000 students reaped the benefits of iCivics in 2017
has come up short. It has failed to inspire young people and remains
alone – a 28% growth. Our teachers were far from taciturn in their gratitude. Countless retold the following story: their students had finally made sense of the complicated political process; they were more energized, more eager
5,250,000 STUDENTS
to come into class than ever before; and where it had not been before,
REAPED THE BENEFITS
our common civic life had become a source of wonder and significance
OF ICIVICS IN 2017 ALONE – A 28% GROWTH.
for these young citizens. Each day, iCivics moves closer to ensuring all students get a great civic education. We have only gotten this far because of your continued trust and commitment to our cause. We must not stop. Good citizenship is a lifelong endeavor. It is what happens when we each respect our most basic rights and duties towards one another; when we each understand how and why government works; and when we care enough about a problem to seek a solution and fix it together. Like a gift, our citizenship should not be taken for granted.
Respectfully,
Louise Dubé
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iCivics Annual Re p or t 20 17
iCivics Board
iCivics
of Directors
Advisory Board
HONORABLE SANDRA DAY O’CONNOR Chairwoman Emeritus, Retired Associate Justice, Supreme Court of the United States
PAUL BAUMANN Director, National Center for Learning and Civic Engagement
JOSEPH KAHNE Dutton Presidential Chair, The University of California, Riverside
JOCELYN BENSON CEO, The Ross Initiative in Sports for Equality (RISE)
ERIC KLOPFER Professor and Director, MIT Scheller Teacher Education Program
WENDY MAY Chairwoman, Partner, Hartline Dacus Barger Dreyer, LLP BRENDAN CULLEN Principal, Cause First Consulting HONORABLE ROBERT HENRY President, Oklahoma City University RALPH IANNELLI President and CEO, Essex Capital Corporation TOM LUE Senior Counsel, Google Advanced Technology and Projects LAIRD MALAMED COO, Oculus JAY O’CONNOR Advisory Partner, Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital ANN M. RAVEL Fellow, New America CA KATHLEEN SMALLEY Partner, Locke Lord JUSTICE SONIA SOTOMAYOR Associate, Justice, Supreme Court of the United States ABIGAIL TAYLOR Assistant Attorney General, Child and Youth Protection Unit; Office of the Massachusetts Attorney General
REBECCA BURGESS Program Manager, Program on American Citizenship, AEI CHRISTOPHER CERF Superintendent, Newark Public Schools JEFF CURLEY iCivics Co-Founder CHRISTINE GARVEY Director, Union Bank of California ALAN GERSHENFELD Co-Founder and President, E-Line Media DIANA HESS Dean, School of Education, University of WisconsinMadison HONORABLE LEE HAMILTON Director, Center on Congress, Indiana University
iCivics welcomes two distinguished members to our Governing Board: Ann Ravel and Laird Malamed.
MICHAEL LEVINE Founding Director, Joan Ganz Cooney Center PETER LEVINE Associate Dean for Research, Tisch College of Civic Life, Tufts University PAUL MIHAILIDIS Associate Dean for Research, Tisch College of Civic Life, Tufts University TED MCCONNELL Executive Director, Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools JULIE O’SULLIVAN Professor of Law, Georgetown University ELOISE PASACHOFF Associate Professor of Law, Georgetown University
MICHELLE M. HERCZOG Former President, National Council for the Social Studies
JOHN RICHARDS President, Consulting Services for Education, Inc
BARRY JOSEPH Associate Director of Digital Learning, American Museum of Natural History
VALERIE SHUTE Professor, College of Education, Florida State University BENJAMIN STOKES Assistant Professor, School of Communication, American University
Both members bring great value and expertise to our leadership, strengthening areas of technology innovation, civic engagement, and government rules and ethics. Mr. Malamed heads CORE Ops and Oculus Seattle, the leader in virtual reality and 2014 acquisition of Facebook; Ms. Ravel is a Fellow at New America addressing issues of civic engagement and also teaches at the UC Berkeley School of Law. “I have been incredibly impressed by the mission of iCivics,” she says. “This work is so necessary now, and the games and teacher trainings are as well thought out as they are effective.”
i C i v i cs A nnua l Re p o r t 2017
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INNOVATION AND IMPACT THE KEY QUESTION THAT DRIVES OUR CREATIVE PROCESS:
Innovation is the hallmark of the iCivics brand. Technology in the classroom is a new reality. It is changing how civics can be taught. More and more teachers are turning to digital solutions to make learning more efficient and more impactful for their students. iCivics continues to innovate, releasing 8 games as apps this year. Our continued ability to combine teacher-friendly, non-partisan, and highly engaging materials makes for scaled and meaningful impact in the classroom. Our simulations help students make the bridge to civic engagement in the world.
What iCivics usage looks like today Used nationally across all
HOW TO MAKE ABSTRACT CONCEPTS Of all teacher-users: ABOUT GOVERNMENT work in RELEVANT public schools TO KIDS?
70%
50
states
Of all teacher-users:
76% 49%
work in public schools work in Title I schools
work in Title I schools
iCivics continues to draw national visibility and recognition.
influential people of 2017 for her leadership in building
For example, iCivics won the Fast Company award for Top
iCivics from the ground-up – and making great civic
10 Most Innovative Companies in Education. This list covers
education available to all.
36 sectors and geographies and includes companies like
As a result of our reach and impact, iCivics has been featured
Duolingo, NASA, and Newsela.
in numerous national publications this year, including
In addition, we were awarded the People’s Voice Award
Education Week and the Wall Street Journal, along with
from the Diller-Von Furstenberg Foundation; and Justice
a range of local news outlets across states.
O’Connor was recognized in Time Magazine’s 100 most 4 |
iCivics Annual Re p or t 20 17
A TEACHER DRIVEN PLATFORM In 2017, our success is blending innovation with
Teachers use our games to capture students’ imagination
impactful learning.
for civic life. Our extensive library of resources – lesson
We strive to get the product right by talking to teachers,
plans and activities, web-extensions, digital learning tools
understanding their classroom needs, and leveraging the
for argumentative writing and evidence-based learning –
power of affordable digitally available civic education.
deepens the learning experience.
’’
I am grateful every day for the bipartisan and factual information iCivics provides my students. One of my students told me the other day that I was the first teacher to ever explain to her how voting works… I would not have been as effective or as
’’
engaging without iCivics.
Leasa Graves, Santa Rosa, CA
Engagement is the key to good
It is a constant challenge to find ways to make the arcane processes
learning. And our power rests in a single observation: iCivics gets
of government interesting and accessible for the kids. I was thrilled
students interested in civic life before
to find iCivics – I had always fantasized about a future in which my
it is even “taught.” Young people make
students could learn through game play.
sense of once-difficult concepts, like
The most enjoyable part has been watching kids try to win the
and explore their implications on
Presidential election in “Win the White House” and pass a law in
our shared society. As a result, they
“search and seizures” or “federalism”
“Lawcraft.” They don’t realize they’re learning – they think they’re competing (and doing so badly!). Only after we debrief do students understand the depth of their learning experience in the game.
’’
better understand their roles as participants in our democracy … And all before they break for lunch.
Joseph Cortese, Homer, NY
i C i v i cs A nnua l Re p o r t 2017
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’’
YEAR IN REVIEW
In 2017, 83,000 teachers
iCivics was created so that every student in America receives an excellent civic education.
came to our website for help – 28% annual growth
Each year, our resources become more varied, while remaining entirely free: poverty must not be a barrier to learning about – and participating in – our government systems. Teachers agree. Overall, some 5.25 million students across all 50 states learned with iCivics in 2017 alone. While this landmark success is partly attributed to iCivics’ strategic growth, the larger context was a raucous and unique election cycle that drove civics teachers, by the thousands, seeking high-quality materials that would awaken their students’ interest while promoting even-handed and fact-based learning. Strategic Game Upgrades As the 2016 election approached, iCivics upgraded two games and led marketing campaigns around each to seize the national momentum for civic learning. The games – Win the White House and Executive Command – underwent a full technical conversion from Flash to Unity, receiving content upgrades and a sleeker visual design. These upgrades ensure students have a more seamless gaming experience. Both games address the electoral process and role of the presidency – and proved astonishingly timely to the civics classroom. Exceeding
3M
even our highest expectations for usage, the games collected a total 10,000,000 gameplays.
NOV 2016
October is always our best month– this year, we shatered our previous record plays
1.6M
(Unique game plays)
950K 280K OCT 2011 6 |
iCivics Annual Re p or t 20 17
OCT 2012
740K
840K
OCT 2013
OCT 2014
970K OCT 2015
OCT 2016
In April, iCivics also
Expanding the Curriculum
released an upgrade of
to High School
our game Counties Work.
Early on, we understood that gamifying
In this game, students get to tackle local problems by stepping into the shoes of a county administrator: addressing the many needs of their demanding county residents, all while regulating taxes and growing the county infrastructure...
civic education was a prominent start... but it could not stand on its own. Teachers, especially at the high school level where government and history is taught the most, have expressly asked us to come up with new teaching materials to support game-based learning. Their urgency was clear.
and holding on to public support! Counties Work conveys the value of local
These teachers need a
government to young students. The game is also
curriculum of greater:
sandwiched within lesson activities that encourage
Breadth – Covering more
students to go out into their communities, search
subjects and curricular
for potential remedies to local problems, and
standards.
tackle them. Technology upgrades
Depth – Driving students’ ties to civic skills and behaviors.
iCivics has worked to convert its most reliable games to apps. The work has paid off: in a little over one year, iCivics has published 8 games for tablet-play. Altogether, they have been installed 3.8 million times.
In 2017, iCivics made tremendous inroads. We added 29 new lesson plans, on topics ranging from the Constitution to State and Local Government as well as News and Media Literacy.
The result is over 1.6M lesson plan downloads just in 2017.
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BUILDING A CIVICS 2.0 Addressing the unmet needs of English Language Learners
Our mission to serve all students equitably would be undercut by not focusing on the fastest growing student group in America. While our nation’s schools count 3.75 million students
ONLY 1 IN 5 ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNER HAS EVEN “BASIC” UNDERSTANDING
learning English – often termed “ELL” – they often get
IN CIVICS
lesser quality civic education than their peers. Both they, and their teachers, lack adapted materials.
(NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS, 2014)
The problem runs deep. Civic education deals with advanced concepts and terminology, which prevents ELLs from absorbing the material in the first place. Civics teachers face great challenges too. They often lack experience and resources in teaching to the specific needs of ELLs. Even more difficult: these students have wide differences in language and academic levels, and are often mixed in with non-ELLs in the classroom. As a result, teachers are left with few options and their students struggle as a result. In 2017, iCivics took the steps to benefit millions of young ELLs. Embarking on a dedicated project to address their unique needs, iCivics is preparing for a set of exciting
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iCivics Annual Re p o r t 20 17
new releases in coming years. We will not only re-adapt our games and lessons to support student scaffolding – or “step-by-step” learning – but engage educators in a national campaign to strengthen instructional strategies around ELL teaching. Our goal is to develop civic literacy for these young members of society. By reinforcing their civic knowledge, skills, and appetite for participation, we reinforce our democracy. iCivics is committed to delivering the same high-quality civic education their peers get.
Our Commitment to Professional Development iCivics is intent on promoting demand for civic education nationwide. While school districts need to adopt pro-civic learning policies, iCivics has begun to offer professional development for civics teachers. Many registered teachers – and various school districts – have expressed demand for this. Civics teachers want to nurture their content mastery and instructional skills. In fact, a large teacher-survey this year confirmed this. Many stressed wanting to improve their content knowledge in civics as well as better integrating gamebased learning into their curriculum. iCivics is well-suited to carry out this program at scale. Most current options for professional development in civics are not affordable or not accessible to the average teacher. iCivics is offering a suite of low-priced, flexible, and on-demand options for them to access “blended” training – mixing in-person and online modules. Our opportunity is to fuel educators’ potential for great civic education.
92% of teachers want some form of professional development from iCivics.
Our cause is urgent. In the wake of the 2016 election, incivility and misinformation grows while communities grow only more polarized. At the root is a crisis in civic education – one that iCivics is determined to combat. As we enter a new year, our goal is to reach 6 million students. This scale is possible at our current growth rate ... but it cannot happen on its own. Our priority is innovation: expanding our programming to new and underserved audiences while making existing resources ever more accessible.
iCivics remains steadfast in its strategic goals for 2020: 1. Scale our reach to 10 million students per year. We are expanding our offerings to new and underserved student populations and ensuring greater access to our free resources. 2. Deepen our impact on students’ ties to literacy and civic engagement. To achieve this, iCivics is developing new digital literacy tools; offering professional development opportunities for civics teachers; and growing key partnerships with ed-tech providers. 3. Push rigorous mandates for civic education forward. iCivics is working in several key initiatives at the state level to create demand for high-quality civic education. Our goal is to rally educators, project-based civic education providers, and funders to drive demand for meaningful policy change. i C i v i cs A nnua l Re p o r t 2017
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THOSE WHO MAKE iCIVICS POSSIBLE We are tremendously grateful for the support we receive from our donors. Their investment keeps iCivics free.
THE iCIVICS TEAM
Foundation of the International Association of Defense Counsel
Wendy May
Lee and Juliet Folger Fund Ralph Iannelli
National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations
Leonard Lauder
Norman Raab Foundation
Jacqueline Mars
O’Melveny & Myers, LLP
William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
The Honorable Bonnie McElveen-Hunter
Kit Pannill
OLIVIA BRODE-ROGER
Mark Perry
Data Analyst
Kenan Charitable Trust
Park Foundation
Craig Primis
KRISTEN CHAPRON
Library of Congress
Wallace Genetic Foundation
Victoria Radd Rollins
ELL Project Lead
Martin Rodgers
AMBER COLEMAN-MORTLEY
LEADER (+ $100,000) S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation Carnegie Corporation of New York Ford Foundation Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation National Association of Counties Robert R. McCormick Foundation Arthur Rock and Toni Rembe Rock
SUSTAINER ($1,000 -$24,999)
Oren Root
Barbara B. Allbritton
Seneca Women
Scott Barshay
Kathleen Smalley
Christine Begley
Robert H. Smith Family Foundation
Cranaleith Foundation Daniel Bussel Kevin Chou
PARTNER ($25,000-$99,999)
Diane Cooley
Amazon Web Services
Jim and Janet D’Addario
Bernstein Family Foundation Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation Charles Evans Hughes Memorial Foundation Christopher Dewey Dagmar Dolby Entertainment Software Association Foundation Diller-Von Furstenberg Foundation
Craig and Susan McCaw Foundation
Louis Dejoy and Aldona Z. Wos Family Foundation Evolve Foundation Patrick and Pam Goodenough The Honorable James Hormel
State Government Affairs Council Foundation Maurice Stewart Silvija Strikis
LOUISE DUBÉ
Executive Director ALISON ATWATER
Senior Curriculum Developer
Digital Media Manager TAYLOR DAVIS
Curriculum Associate LYUBO DOPCHEV
Web Developer MEGHAN ECKNER
Executive Assistant
Patricia Warner
DR. EMMA HUMPHRIES
William B. Wiener, Jr. Foundation
Chief Education Officer NASH KAMAL
Thomas Wilner
Principal Engineer
Harriet Wiser and Duke Woods
SUE MEEHAN Chief Operating &
Anne Irwin
Financial Officer
Kirkland & Ellis, LLP
MOLLY MORRISON
Lincoln and Therese Filene Foundation Robert Long, Jr. Thomas Lue
Chief Development Officer GABRIEL NEHER
Development Associate CARRIE RAY-HILL
Director of Content DR. KELLY LEAHY WHITNEY Chief Product and Partnerships Officer
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iCivics Annual Re p or t 20 17
FY2017 FINANCIAL REPORT Students Reached vs. Expenses* For every $.53 invested, a student learns with iCivics.
6M
5M
Students reached 4M
Expenses (in $) 3M
2M
1M FY14
FY15
FY16
FY17
June 30, 2017
June 30, 2016
2,611,331
2,411,901
In-Kind
740,450
826,399
Royalties & Contract Income
633,100
304,000
Support and Revenue Contributions
Interest Income & Other Revenue
90,472
18,677
Total Support
4,075,353
3,560,977
Program Expenses
2,746,511
(78%)
2,734,407
(80%)
Management & General
298,285
(9%)
409,009
(12%)
Fundraising
471,153
(13%)
269,265
(8%)
Total Expenses
3,515,949
3,412,681
Net assets, Beginning of Year
2,328,470
2,180,174
Net Assets, End of Year
2,887,874
2,328,470
559,404
148,296
Change in Net Assets *Excludes in-kind donations
i C i v i cs A nnua l Re p o r t 2017
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CIVIC
EDUCATION
info@icivics.org | 1035 Cambridge Street, Suite 21B | Cambridge, MA 02141 (617) 356-8311 | www.icivics.org |
@icivics |
facebook.com/icivics