A pioneer in civic education, the Citizenship Education Clearing House (CECH-pronounced “check”) has been conducting programs in citizenship education since the late 1960’s. From the beginning, CECH programs have sought to integrate participatory citizenship education into school curricula to facilitate the development and implementation of student-initiated action projects. CECH attempts to teach citizenship by encouraging participatory projects that engage students in the debate of real issues and the actual practice of democracy.
Bill of Rights Institute
Founded in 1999, the Bill of Rights Institute is a non-partisan, non-profit educational organization. Its team develops educational resources on American history and government, provides professional development opportunities to teachers, and runs student programs and scholarship contests. The Institute's depth of knowledge is drawn from a full-time staff with more than 100 years of combined classroom experience, as well as from partners who are experts in their fields.
MyImpact Challenge
MyImpact Challenge is the Bill of Rights Institute’s national service-learning contest. Students are encouraged to tackle community problems using creative solutions drawn from the fields of government, charity, or entrepreneurship. MyImpact Challenge also cuts through today’s polarizing climate by requiring both a demonstrated impact on the community and an essay on how a project exemplifies Civic Virtues and Founding Principles. Local community service brings all of us together, and this contest strives to bring out the best in America at the time when we need it most.
CECH began in the late 1960’s when Teresa M. Fischer and a small group of associates launched CECH as an independent non-profit corporation. In 1993, CECH’s ability to achieve Terry Fischer’s guiding vision expanded significantly when CECH joined the School (now College) of Education at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. One year later, the University, with a financial gift from Teresa and Aaron Fischer, created an endowed professorship in Citizenship Education. It was the expectation of the Fischers that the new endowed professor would direct CECH and promote citizenship education in the St. Louis region and beyond. In 1995, shortly after the death of Mrs. Fischer, the University named the professorship in her honor, fittingly recognizing her long and successful career as a community leader and incorporating her compelling vision into the mission of the professorship. The professorship was named the Teresa M. Fischer Endowed Professor of Citizenship Education.
The Endowed Professorship is part of the University of Missouri-St. Louis’ College of Education and is held by an expert in the field of citizenship education. The professor serves as Director of CECH and existing citizenship programs and promotes the activities of the program through teaching, research, program development, and fundraising.
