The Role of States and the US Constitution
The Right to Vote: The Role of States and the US Constitution is a multi-year project to develop a high school program on the role of the states in determining and protecting voting rights.
The Right to Vote
The Right to Vote
About the Project
The Right to Vote: The Role of States and the US Constitution is a multi-year project to develop a high school program on the role of the states in determining and protecting voting rights. As part of this project, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History has produced a suite of resources for high school students, their teachers, and the general public on the history of voting rights, including
- New lesson plans in our Teaching Civics through History model
- Historical background essays
- A multi-panel traveling exhibition to tour at the Institute’s Affiliate Schools, Affiliate Libraries, and other partner organizations, plus a digital companion to the traveling exhibition
- Voting Rights Prizes to outstanding student work demonstrating a commitment to civic engagement
This resource suite is available to all high school teachers and students, and will be rolled out alongside a series of professional development programs.
Voting Rights Forum
As a culmination of The Right to Vote: The Role of States and the US Constitution and in celebration of Constitution Day, the Gilder Lehrman Institute hosted a Voting Rights Forum at Stuyvesant High School in New York, streaming live around the world via Zoom Webinars. Hear from an array of scholars and policy makers, learn more about the history of states’ roles in choosing who gets to vote, and gain a greater understanding of contemporary issues concerning voting and federalism by watching a recording of the program at the link below.
The Right to Vote Resource Suite
Essays
Read scholarly perspectives on the history of voting rights through essays geared to high school students
Lesson Plans
Learn how individuals and groups attempted to expand access to the vote in "Taking a Stand for Voting Rights: Six States, Six Stories, One Goal."
Digital Exhibitions
Explore our four-part digital exhibition on the history of voting rights, which includes audiovisual elements and interactive maps
This project is supported by the 2022 Leonore Annenberg Institute for Civics Award, presented by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. The Leonore Annenberg Institute for Civics Award aims to further an exemplary and ambitious project that would improve civics education in the nation’s elementary, secondary, or high school classrooms.
The Gilder Lehrman Institute’s project was selected from proposals submitted by some of the thirty-nine partners in the Civics Renewal Network (CRN), a consortium founded by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of nonprofit, nonpartisan organizations dedicated to strengthening civic life in the United States. The competition is open to organizations that are partners in CRN. Visit our Supplemental Resources page for more material on the history of voting rights from the Institute and our CRN partners.
