• The Citizen’s Republic: Power From the People

    Our guest author Erica McPheeters works with the Human Rights Campaign as a consultant and social advocate, focusing on equity, LGBTQ+ rights, and community empowerment.

    The Great Rejection

    Almost two hundred fifty years ago, the original American colonies decided to pursue the right to freedom. Before freedom came the king. This decision has not only changed the trajectory of human governance, but has influenced every aspect of American ideals for almost two hundred fifty years. By denying the proposed divine right of kings and embracing one of the most important concepts of the United States: democracy. This decision embedded certain principles into the legacy of this country. Power derives from the people and cannot be substituted with birthright or conquests. The United States’ shift from a monarchy to a democracy redesigned the future of the entire world while creating a new reality between the government and citizens.

    At the inception of our democracy, colonists were not only displeased with a monarchy government, but }"
    they were concerned with addressing the greater system that subjected individual citizens to a lack of rights, privileges, and freedoms. Absolute power implies the exclusive role of leaders in making decisions for the masses. Where there is a king, there are only subjects, not citizens. When the thirteen colonies declared independence, it represented the reclamation of all freedoms that humans deserve. They broke away from a deep-rooted history of accepting the inevitable rulership of kings. The Founders of the United States saw something greater for the future of this country. They pictured a republic where power can be held accountable. In this democracy, power is the responsibility of us all. It is now the responsibility of Americans to preserve and protect the democracy the Founders and colonists curated for us. 

    The Path from Subjects to Citizens

    The transformation from colonial subjects to democratic citizens was a relentless fight. Through decades of struggle, compromise, and refinement, the United States was able to form and assert our guiding values— life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These democratic ideals forged through historic events included the Boston Tea Party, the Continental Congress, and the fierce revisions of the Constitution. In these critical moments, Americans consistently chose self-governance over a king.

    However, democracy requires more than the absence of a king. The framers of the Constitution understood this well and formulated institutional safeguards against the concentration of power. The checks and balances, branches of government, and federalism system creates a division between any individual or group from gaining control of this democracy. In fact, the Bill of Rights aims to ensure these safeguards by protecting individual freedoms from the reach of the government, despite political pressure or opinion.

  • Science of Reading Laws: Let’s Begin with the Facts

    In the past five years, virtually every state has enacted legislation aimed at improving reading instruction—a wave of reform the Shanker Institute has been (and still is) following closely. The legislation is far from perfect. Some laws lack clarity or feel clunky — somewhat misaligned with the complexity of teaching and learning to read. Others are overly rigid, and have unenforceable mandates that do little to inspire educators' trust. 

    These are all valid critiques—ones we at the Institute have raised ourselves. But because we’ve taken the time to read and code these laws, we also take issue with how some of the criticisms are framed. Often, sweeping generalizations dominate the public conversation, misrepresenting both the content and intent of these laws. In this commentary, we address several of the most common misconceptions.

    But before jumping in, here is some context: a total of 118 laws in 23 states and the District of Columbia use the expression “science of reading” in at least one piece of legislation passed between 2019 and 2024. By contrast, language invoking the use of "evidence" and "research" appears in virtually all states. As we noted in our 2023 report, states vary significantly in how they define “science of reading” – a topic we may tackle separately.