Community colleges were founded on the conviction that higher education should serve as a public good — open, inclusive and responsive to the needs of all citizens. Emerging from the democratic ideals of access, equity and collective advancement, these institutions prepare informed and engaged individuals capable of sustaining both the economic vitality and the civic health of their communities.
Often referred to as “democracy’s colleges,” they were envisaged as spaces where education nurtures individual success while advancing public purpose and social responsibility. However, this founding mission now faces significant challenges amid growing political polarization, cultural division and contested debates over immigration and diversity. As public discourse grows increasingly fragmented and many students confront uncertainty about their futures, the civic role of community colleges has never been more vital to the renewal of democratic life.
Renewing this mission begins with a reaffirmation of the centrality of civic learning. Far from being a peripheral endeavor, civic learning provides a framework for realizing the democratic promise at the heart of community college education. It integrates knowledge, skills and values into purposeful action, fostering the development of the whole person. Through service learning, reflective practice and dialogue across differences, students come to recognize that education carries a collective responsibility. They learn that democracy is not only a system of governance but also a shared way of living together.
In COD’s fiber
At the College of DuPage (COD), civic engagement is both an academic and a moral commitment. Rather than merely learning civic responsibility from textbooks, our students experience it firsthand. Students across the disciplines participate in service-learning and community-based projects that promote wellness, sustainability and civic participation through initiatives such as Unify America and Braver Angels. These initiatives demonstrate that civic engagement is not merely an extracurricular activity but a vital expression of learning.
Through participation, reflection and collaboration, students begin to view themselves as capable of shaping their communities and fostering a stronger sense of belonging while simultaneously developing social capital that underpins civic engagement and collective efficacy.
A call to all
This work continues the long tradition of civic education in community colleges. As Robert Franco reminds us in The Civic Role of Community Colleges: Preparing Students for the Work of Democracy, these institutions were created to democratize both education and the educational experience of enrolled students. However, Franco warns that overemphasizing the preparation of applied disciplines has, at times, displaced this broader democratic mission. His call to reassert the civic purpose of community colleges is both timely and urgent. Education should not be reduced to credentialing; it must also cultivate the disposition and capacity necessary for self-governance. Franco’s vision echoes that of the early reformers, who understood education as the foundation of democracy and believed that colleges must serve as the civic hearts of their communities.
Based on Franco’s call, the civic project of higher education can be articulated through three interrelated goals: strengthening students’ understanding of democratic knowledge, cultivating civic skills and fostering civic disposition. Knowledge encompasses the historical and institutional foundations of the United States, as well as the ongoing evolution of its democratic ideals. Civic skills refer to the capacity to weigh evidence, reason ethically and deliberate respectfully. Civic dispositions — empathy, tolerance and open-mindedness — are moral sensibilities that sustain democratic life.
Together, these goals move education beyond utility toward meaning. They remind us that the purpose of learning is not only to earn a living, but also to live responsibly with others.
In community colleges, where students from diverse backgrounds come together, civic learning takes on special significance. It allows working adults, first-generation learners and newcomers to connect personal growth with public responsibility.
For undocumented and immigrant students, in particular, civic engagement becomes a pathway to a sense of belonging. Many of these students have spent most of their lives in American communities but remain excluded from full civic participation. When they volunteer at local food pantries, mentor younger students, or lead campus dialogues, they engage in the most valid forms of citizenship, i.e., community involvement. Through such experiences, they discover that belonging is not defined by legal status, but rather by one’s contributions.
Empirical research consistently supports this argument. Several studies have demonstrated that students who engage in service-learning courses exhibit significant enhancement in civic knowledge, commitment and social responsibility. These studies also underscore that civic engagement should be defined broadly, not merely as political action, but also as community involvement, reflection and care.
For community college students who juggle work, study and family responsibilities, these acts of engagement provide structured opportunities to reflect on their role in society. The impact is profound: service learning deepens understanding, fosters persistence, and transforms education into a lived experience of empathy and purpose.
Rolling up the sleeves
At the College of DuPage, we observe this transformation daily. Our Civic Engagement Community of Practice, led by faculty and staff, has developed a comprehensive ecosystem that links classroom learning to community involvement. Students participate directly in the democratic process via COD Votes and the Poll Worker Project. They learn to engage respectfully in contested issues through partnerships with Dialogue Across Difference and Braver Angels. Our institution has been recognized as a Voter-Friendly Campus and one of America’s Most Engaged Colleges for Student Voting. These achievements are not ends in themselves, but signs of a thriving civic culture, reaffirming that higher education can heal divisions by cultivating empathy and shared purpose.
Our work at COD also underscores the institutional truth that civic education flourishes only when it is intentional. This requires investment in faculty development, structured partnerships and administrative support. One of our future endeavors includes exploring the establishment of an Office for Civic and Community Engagement at COD. This centralized hub will coordinate service-learning efforts, strengthen community partnerships and ensure that civic learning remains a core component of the college’s mission.
As community college leaders, we must view civic engagement not as a program, but as a promise that education will continue to prepare citizens to think critically, act ethically and care deeply. In an era of cynicism and polarization, our institutions are among the last public spaces where dialogue across difference can occur. We must protect and expand that space by modeling what it means to reason together, to listen and to serve. This responsibility is particularly vital for colleges that serve undocumented and marginalized students, for whom civic learning can transform fear into confidence and invisibility into agency.
The work of democracy is ongoing. It takes place not only in legislative chambers, but also in classrooms, libraries and community partnerships. It happens every time a student learns to deliberate respectfully or choose service over indifference.
At the College of DuPage, we see democracy come alive in these small, everyday acts — when students vote for the first time, or mentor a child or collaborate across differences to solve a shared problem. These moments, which are multiplied across campuses and communities, reinforce the social fabric that binds us together.
Community colleges were founded to ensure that the privileges of education and, by extension, democracy, remain accessible to everyone. To sustain this vision, we must continue linking learning with civic purpose, equity with belonging, and opportunities for shared responsibility. The health of our democracy depends on this.
As educators and leaders, we are called not only to teach about democracy, but also to practice it every day within our institutions and alongside our students. That is the enduring promise of community colleges and the living work of democracy itself.
