Can We Talk? Essay Contest: "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness"

2026 marks the 250th anniversary of one of the most important documents human beings have ever produced. The ambitious mission of the government envisioned in that document? To protect core human rights, including "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Author Walter Isaacson has called the section containing those words "the greatest sentence ever written."

Can We Talk?, a project of the Committee of Seventy, is sponsoring its second annual essay competition for Pennsylvania high school students, this time to consider the following prompt:

In this anniversary year, how well do you think the American people and their government are upholding equality, human rights and "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness"? Whether you think the picture is positive, negative or mixed, please provide a few examples to support your judgment.

The entry deadline is March 1, with prizes up to $500 available. See the link here for more details.

If students are so inclined and also live in Philadelphia, they can submit this essay to the next writing contest below as well...

Vote That Jawn Sheno Prizes for youth writing

Vote That Jawn is excited to announce the second annual Erinda Sheno Memorial Prizes, celebrating young writers in Philadelphia. Sponsored this year in partnership with the Committee of Seventy, ArtPhilly, and Kelly Writers House, students from all over Philadelphia can write about the social, civic, or political causes that matter most to them.

Founded by Philadelphia author, teacher, and voting advocate Lorene Cary, Vote That Jawn aims to amplify youth voices and get young people excited to vote.

The Sheno Prizes, honoring the legacy of Vote That Jawn Youth Leader Erinda Sheno, recognize outstanding, short pieces on voting, democracy, immigration, or Philadelphia life. One high school student and one college student will each receive a cash prize, publication opportunities in the Philadelphia Citizen, and more!

Youth writers can submit a piece of about 600 words by February 16, 2026, at VoteThatJawn.com. Winners (and their teachers) will also be invited to a special celebration in March, featuring food, fun, and special guests from across Philly. We've also attached our media kit here, with more information and materials to share with your students.

Reach out to VTJ’s Program Director, Beth Feldman Brandt (program@votethatjawn.com) if you have any questions. We look forward to seeing your students' creative contributions!

Teachers: Join the Civic Learning Week National Forum March 9-10 in Philadelphia

In anticipation of the nation’s semiquincentennial, the 2026 Civic Learning Week National Forum is expanding to two days — March 9–10, 2026. Join educators, policymakers, researchers, academics, students, and private- and public-sector leaders in Philadelphia as we explore Liberty and Learning: Civic Education at 250. Register for free here.

Programming by and for educators will include:

• Practitioners sharing approaches to cultivating student voice and engagement and identifying strategies to overcome barriers to civic teaching and learning;
• State education chiefs grappling with how to prioritize civic education in shifting environments;
• Students from across the country sharing their experiences and reflections on civic learning as they near graduation on the cusp of the nation’s 250th anniversary;
• Sessions on key topics in civic education today, including assessment, artificial intelligence, and civil discourse;
• A deep dive into the Roadmap to Educating for American Democracy—an inquiry-based framework for excellence in history and civics for all learners.

Educators will receive a certificate of participation from the Harvard Graduate School of Education documenting professional learning and educators from Pennsylvania will receive Act 48 hours for attendance.

Feedback on developing new social studies texts

K-12 textbook publisher Gibbs Smith Education (GSE) is seeking feedback as they develop two new textbooks, one for 8th grade and one for 4th, aligned to national and state social studies standards.

If you are interested in reviewing for GSE, they offer a negotiable stipend of $75 per chapter for review. Eighth grade chapters will be available beginning in February and will be sent one at a time until mid-March. Fourth grade chapters will be available beginning in late May and will be sent out through mid-August. They find most reviewers spend about 1-2 hours in each chapter leaving comments. 

In addition to the stipend, they will include a brief biography of you in the “Reviewers and Contributors” section of the textbook and will send a complimentary copy of the book when it is finished.

Please reach out to Theresa Kay at theresa.kay@gibbs-smith.com if you are interested in participating.