Community Organizing and Collective Action
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Community organizing is central to effective change strategies. Students need at least one full course on "community organizing" -- the theory and practice of various strategies for organizing people to work jointly to impact issues they care about. Students learn strategies for building relationships, teams and organizations. They become familiar with various techniques for influencing public policy and institutions including nonviolent action, building effective nonprofits and unions, community development, and mobilizing movements and voters. Extensive experiential education, learning by doing organizing, is vital to this skill and knowledge development. See later section on internships, etc.
In short, these courses and related field experience introduce students to the skills and knowledge they'll need to be effective in helping people become fully engaged in influencing the social, economic, and political institutions and policies which have so much effect on their lives and opportunities -- to become full participants in our democracy. |
Because there is no single way to teach organizing, this site includes (1) several syllabi reflecting the different choices several leading academics have made, as well as (2) planning guides to help with course development. Also attached are (3) examples of the invaluable guidance experienced practitioners can provide to students and others who learn CO primarily on the job.
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Stories of how three outstanding community organizers and leaders developed through experience, training and mentoring ---
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Resources for Course Design
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Why do you want to teach this class in Community Organizing?
Alternative learning goals to help teachers, trainers and others think through what they are trying to accomplish as they "teach community organizing". How does that affect course design and choices? |
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Teaching Community Organizing
An overview of alternative student learning goals and the skills and areas of knowledge which students must develop to become effective organizers and democratic leaders, whether their careers are with community and constituency-based organizations, other nonprofits, public agencies or other organizations striving to understand and work with people in under-served communities. |
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Course Blueprint for POL334 – Organizing & Leadership
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Job Profile of an Organizer
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Main Elements in Courses on Community Organizing
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Planning a Community Organizing Course 101
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Community Organizing 101 Instructor Syllabus Guide
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WHAT DOES A COMMUNITY ORGANIZER DO?
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Sample Syllabi AND OTHER RESOURCES
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Community and Political Organizing CUNY Syllabus
This syllabus was developed for the CLP-affiliated Certificate program at City University of New York by Political Science Prof. John Krinsky and Adjunct Lecturer Hilary Caldwell |
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Community Organizing 101 Instructor Syllabus by Danny HoSang
Now at Yale, Professor HoSang applied his long experience teaching and training at the Center for Third World Organizing (CTWO) in developing this flexible guide for the Community Learning Partnership |
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Direct Action Community Organizing Training Sessions and Exercise Guide, by Michael Jacoby Brown
This guide was also prepared for CLP as it began assisting community and academic leaders to partner in creating new Degree and Certificate program. It reflects more of an "Alinsky approach" to organizing. |
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Marshall Ganz — Marrakesh Training Guide
Based at Harvard's Kennedy School and deeply experience as a trainer and lead organizer for Cesar Chavez and others, Ganz has refined a "public narrative" approach to expanding organizing. This training guide includes detailed lesson plans, worksheets and scenarios which can enliven academic courses as well as training workshops on community organizing. |
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Fundamentals of Community Organizing by George Goehl
An excellent on-line guide to the fundamentals, written by the former Executive Director of
Peoples Action, a national network of grassroots community organizations most of which are based on Available on SubStack
the direct membership of low and working class members rather than. being congregation based
An excellent on-line guide to the fundamentals, written by the former Executive Director of
Peoples Action, a national network of grassroots community organizations most of which are based on Available on SubStack
the direct membership of low and working class members rather than. being congregation based
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House Meeting Guide by Fred Ross, Jr.+
Like his father who was one of the greatest organizers of his era, Fred Ross, Jr was steeped in practical organizing in union, community, and broad movement settings. This product reflects the level of rigor, sophisticated thinking and democratic processes both men personified. |
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Midwest Academy Strategy Chart
Honed over many years of experience, this provides an excellent tool for thinking through strategies for collective action. |
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Power Analysis by Lew Finfer
This detailed piece on conducting a power analysis as the basis for developing strategies, allies, and sophisticated techniques for creating progressive change. It is through and expert, the basis for very useful classroom learning. |
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Teaching Social Action by Scott Myers-Lipton
Excerpt from Myers-Lipton's guide on teaching approaches he has developed at UC San Jose and training faculty at other colleges. Companion to the author's book on Social Action. |
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Practical Materials on Advocacy and Organizing
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Community Organizer Position
Examples of job announcement for organizing job with a community based organizing. |
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An Advocacy Guide for Maryland
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Indivisible; A Practical Guide to Resisting the Trump Agenda
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Specific Learning Modules
Reports from Community Organizing and Family Issues (COFI) Excellent reports available at cofionline.org
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The Council is in Session
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Student Story Page 177-180
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navigate to other Core Subjects
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