The American Academy of Arts & Sciences has released a publication designed to help colleges and universities address a defining academic and societal challenge: preparing young people today with the knowledge, skills, and habits to sustain a healthy constitutional democracy. Preparing Students for Civic Life: A Guide for Higher Education Leaders includes strategies and case studies.

Dysfunctional immigration policies implemented in recent decades have accelerated growth of the Latino population and racialized its members around the trope of illegality. Until 2016, the cultivation of White resentment relied on a dog-whistle politics of racially coded symbolic language, but with the election of Donald Trump, White nationalist sentiments became explicit.

David Ellwood and Christopher Jencks discuss how inequalities in race, gender, and income continue to divide American society. Through the 2000–2001 Stated Meeting series on inequalities, the Academy seeks to reevaluate what has been achieved in the past quarter-century and assess the challenges that await us in the future.

With the national conversation generated by "The Heart of the Matter" still ongoing, the American Academy's Humanities Indicators has put forth a report card to provide a snapshot of current data illustrating where the humanities are today.

The Academy's Statement on Anti-Racism acknowledges the organization's unique history and commits to anti-racism as a fundamental part of the Academy's mission to advance the public good.

From the Archives

It is with deep sadness that the Academy notes the passing of business leader, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and dedicated public servant Morton L. Mandel on October 16, 2019, at the age of 98.

The Summer 2020 issue of Dædalus, “Religion & Democracy,” guest-edited by Robert Audi, takes on the challenge of outlining standards that balance respect for both religion and democracy, and provide for their mutual flourishing. The volume addresses both institutional questions and the ethics of citizenship as bearing on how individuals, religious or not, may best regard their role in the political system in which they live.

In updates released this morning, the American Academy's Humanities Indicators report that visits to historic sites, museums, and art galleries are on the rise in recent years.

Capitalist democracy needs rethinking and renewal. Our current political economic framework is fixated on GDP, individual achievement, and short-term profit, all the while heightening barriers to widespread prosperity. Faced with mounting climate crises and systemic discrimination, how can we reconfigure our systems to secure economic well-being for all? What steps must we take to ensure our new approaches are (and will remain) sustainable?

Academy’s Commission on the Arts issues Art is Work: Policies to Support Creative Workers, recognizing the importance of artists to the national economy

Amplifying a recommendation in Our Common Purpose, this OpEd in the Boston Globe proposes aligning state and federal election calendars to strengthen democracy by increasing participation, representation, and engagement in voting. 

Ways to Engage with the Academy

The Academy is launching the Our Common Purpose Communities Project - a national coalition of municipalities committed to strengthening American democracy. Lexington, Kentucky is the first city in the nation to join this effort and identify two recommendations from the Our Common Purpose report to advance at the local level.

A new resource from American Academy of Arts and Sciences to promote bridging divides and recognizing the value of economic connectedness.