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Social Studies Organizations

Graphic for community for social studies

The following organizations provide numerous opportunities for educators to become involved in social studies in Colorado.


Colorado Center for Civic Learning and Engagement (C3LE) 
The primary goal of C3LE is to promote civic education programs in Colorado schools. We achieve this goal by providing professional development workshops for teachers, support materials for classrooms, and civic events for students.  C3LE currently acts as the Colorado state coordinator for three national civics programs: the We The People constitutional law program, the Project Citizen civic action program, and Street Law, Inc. community deliberations.

Colorado Jump$tart Coalition 
The Colorado Jump$tart Coalition is a nonprofit organization with more than 30 organizations and individuals representing business, nonprofits, government and education throughout the state of Colorado.  The organization offers professional development opportunities in financial literacy for Colorado educators.

Colorado Council for the Social Studies
The Colorado Council for the Social Studies is a state affiliate of the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS).  NCSS and CCSS work to promote social studies education.  CCSS provides collegial opportunities for Colorado social studies educators, including a quarterly newsletter. Additionally, CCSS holds an annual conference every spring. The conference provides an excellent opportunity for networking, learning about new resources and instructional strategies, and for having collegial conversations.

Colorado Holocaust Educators
Colorado Holocaust Educators is a group of teachers trained by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.  These USHMM Fellows work with teachers in Colorado to promote, and support quality Holocaust and Genocide education.  Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/coholo.org?fref=ts

Economic Literacy Colorado (ELC) 
ELC works to promote and improve economic and personal financial literacy for K-12 students in all of Colorado’s public, private and parochial schools. The most cost-effective way for ELCto reach the largest possible number of students is to provide superior professional development programs and curriculum resources to their teachers.

Facing History and Ourselves
Facing History and Ourselves is an international educational and professional development organization whose mission is to engage students of diverse backgrounds in an examination of racism, prejudice, and anti-Semitism in order to promote the development of a more humane and informed citizenry.  Facing History helps students make the essential connection between history and the moral choices they confront in their own lives.

History Colorado
History Colorado partners with universities, libraries, and other leading educational institutions to provide professional development opportunities for history and social studies educators.

Junior Achievement 
Prepare students to succeed in today’s global economy by inspiring a passion in free enterprise and entrepreneurship, and instilling an understanding of personal financial literacy. Junior Achievement’s (JA) K-12th grade financial literacy programs advance youth, economic, and educational development.

National History Day in Colorado
The National History Day program in Colorado engages students in the study of history throughout the school year. Students conduct research of primary and secondary resources to prepare presentations based on an annual theme. The annual theme is broad enough in scope to encourage investigation of topics ranging from local and state history to national and world history. NHDC provides professional development opportunities for teachers interested in implementing NHDC in their school.

Program for Teaching East Asia
TEA is located at the Center for Asian Studies conducts national, regional, and state projects designed to enhance and expand teaching and learning about East Asia at the elementary and secondary school levels. Specific projects focus on curriculum development, professional development for teachers, and curriculum consultation and reform related to Asia in K-12 education.

Teaching with Primary Sources 
Funded by a grant from the Library of Congress, the Teaching with Primary Sources (TPS) program at MSU Denver promotes the use of primary sources in instruction by offering FREE professional development opportunities for K-12 educators across the state. TPS-Colorado promotes the use of primary sources in instruction across the state and at all grade levels. There are a variety of professional development delivery options (face-to-face, online, and blended) available to accommodate teachers’ specific educational needs and schedules.

World Affairs Challenge
The World Affairs Challenge (WAC) is dedicated to developing tomorrow's global leaders. With mentoring, education, and project-based competition, WAC facilitates middle-school and high-school passion and learning about world affairs. WAC engages youth to solve some of the world's most pressing problems. WAC students move from awareness to action while learning to think critically, collaborate, communicate, and grow human capacity.