# Presentation: 420634

## Study Circles

- Matt Leighninger

## Study Circles

*Reasons for shift away from traditional citizen involvement: *
- Need for dialogue among citizens on race;
- Increasing acrimony surrounding policy decisions;
- Public resources insufficient for solving public problems;
- Frustrations with traditional community organizing.

## Study Circles

*A new generation of “democratic organizing” efforts:*
- Recruiting a diverse critical mass of residents;
- Using both small- and large-group meetings;
- Giving people a chance to compare experiences and consider a range of views;
- Effecting change: learning, relationship-building, policy input, tangible action.

## Study Circles

*Successful small groups (sometimes called study circles):*
- Include 8-12 people, and meet for several sessions;
- Are facilitated by someone who can remain impartial;
- Are open to many different views;
- Include a diverse mix of people;
- Follow a sequence from personal experience to larger questions to action planning.

## Study Circles

*Successful large-group meetings (sometimes called action forums):*
- Summarize the conclusions reached in the small groups
- Allow people to form task forces on action ideas, or connect people with existing action opportunities
- Allow public officials to hear and add to the conclusions reached in the circles
- Provide participants a chance to socialize, network, and compare notes

## Study Circles

*More talk, more action:*
- Individual volunteerism;
- Small-group action efforts;
- Changes made by organizations;
- Policy changes.

## Study Circles

*New assumption: Solving public problems requires the whole community*
- Potential for greater problem-solving capacity;
- Greater need for coordination;
- Confusion over accountability;
- Illuminates need for regional collaboration.

## Study Circles

*New assumption: Proactive, network-based recruitment is critical*
- Can reach people who haven’t been involved;
- Raises question of who should provide staff time for organizing;
- Reveals different outreach capacities of different groups;
- Forces recruiters to think about “what’s in it for citizens.”

## Study Circles

*New assumption: Putting policy decisions in citizen context helps the discussions*
- Potential for more broadly supported policies, with government not the only implementer;
- Can be more difficult to address technical or abstract issues;
- Requires different way of writing about issues.

## Study Circles

*New assumption: Citizens can be expected to learn, empathize, change opinions*
- Challenge of bringing together people on different sides of an issue;
- Danger for officials in suggesting that citizen opinions should change.

## Study Circles

*New assumption: Larger sense of civic duty includes dialogue, learning, action*
- Potential for more people to take leadership roles;
- Need to provide more regular opportunities for people to exercise active citizenship;
- Danger of division between ‘active citizens’ and others

## Study Circles

*Important planning questions:*
- What is the issue you want citizens to address, and how should you describe it?
- What do you hope to achieve?
- Who are you trying to involve, and why would they want to participate?
- How will you provide participants with the information they need?
- Who are your key partners?
- How will you staff this project?
- How should you get started?