Ryle responds on Youth Civic Hub and public messaging

I think you and I both are at the same level of exhaustion of regularly telling people we do, in fact, teach civics in New York City public schools.

And so I think, well, first off, you mentioned the Youth Civics Hub.

So I do want to address that.

If I'm correct, that is the website that was done in collaboration across a few youth civics ed organizations.

And so that's something we've met with those organizations to support them in that work.

We share it out to our schools so that the students know and have access to that youth civics hub when it was first being built.

I'm trying to.

To recall, it was quite some time ago.

It was.

I had met with the students who were building it to talk through what we thought would be most accessible to students in schools.

So we're grateful to them for kind of taking that extracurricular piece so that students are aware of opportunities that they have available to them in their communities.

In terms of messaging, I think, number one, our superintendents and their awareness.

For us, too, when we first started implementing.

I love the superintendents, but they don't go outside public schools.

They stay right in them.

I'm just saying.

Sure.

Thank you.

I love you guys, but don't do the outreach.

Go ahead.

I think there was first some misunderstandings at the school level, at the superintendency, as to how civics would fit into the teaching and learning that was already happening.

And so we engaged in an internal New York City Public Schools-focused awareness-building campaign in those early years.

As far as externally, I am often on panels that I am invited to.

The Bar Association is one that I am on every year.

New York Law School had a Constitution Day, just trying to get the word out.

Anytime someone says to me, we do not teach civics in New York City public schools, I give them my email address and tell them, invite me.

I'm happy to share that.

Yeah, but you can't do it with 8.4 million people.

I do my best.

I know, but we have to do more.

I'm just saying.

I don't know if the mayor wants to do his thing, but everybody, you know, Kamala could do the same thing.

Somebody has to really tell people on a constant basis because it would help schools, our administration, our caring about the issue, et cetera.

And I would suggest if you can do something in the next few weeks.

Just so people know that it's, you know, it's a current topic, needless to say, in the United States right now.

I appreciate that.

I appreciate your passion for it.

And also thank you to both chairs for having this hearing in the first place.

I think this is doing a lot to build awareness.