Bipartisan Alliance Launches Lessons in Civics With the Help of Former Presidents and First Ladies
The Obamas, Bushes and Clintons are among those to draw on the wisdom of the past in a collection of essays.
A group of bipartisan optimists who have been meeting for the past two years about the need for civic education for all ages, among other issues, are betting the helpless narrative of political division that has gripped the United States is, like a feverish fad, now past its prime.
For them, it’s not a gamble, though. It’s a duty. And, they are hopeful about nudging the citizenry out of the chasm toward a fuller understanding of democracy with lessons learned and illuminated by nonpartisan history as the country approaches its 250th founding anniversary in 2026.
That group, a Washington, D.C.-based organization called More Perfect, which includes an alliance of about 40 presidential centers and foundations and educational and civic initiatives from around the country, took a bold step Wednesday when it launched the new national initiative In Pursuit with the intention of distilling wisdom about leadership and democracy from former American presidents and first ladies.
“People are really focused on this divided rhetoric,” said Colleen Shogan, CEO of In Pursuit and the 11th Archivist of the United States fired by President Donald Trump in February. She made the announcement at a Constitution Day Symposium at American University. “That doesn’t mean that we’re going to be stuck in this forever.”
In fact, the group sees as its first step to advance universal civic learning with the In Pursuit project that will feature a curated collection of essays on U.S. presidents and select first ladies. The contributors—eager to participate, Shogan tells East Wing Magazine in an interview earlier this week—includes three former presidents, three former first ladies, the current chief justice of the Supreme Court and seven Pulitzer Prize winners among others. Their essays will reflect on each historic figure and share a key lesson from their leadership, creating a “catalog of wisdom” for future Americans.
“We hope In Pursuit will launch a national conversation about what we can learn from the past to form a more perfect union for decades to come,” said John Bridgeland, founder and CEO of More Perfect, in a statement.
The series will be accessible for free and published incrementally and chronologically through a partnership with Substack throughout 2026, although the project is designed to extend over 10 years, according to Shogan. The online media platform is also poised to assist in dissemination of the content, events and engagement.
“Civic discourse is one of the most important forms of communication we have, shaping how we think and who we are as a society,” said Substack co-founder Hamish McKenzie in a statement. “This partnership with In Pursuit is a chance to foster a productive national conversation, learn from our shared history, and build understanding. That’s exactly the kind of dialogue we built Substack to support.”
The first essay, written by former President George W. Bush, will focus on President George Washington and be released on President’s Day, February 16, 2026.
While the organization says some of the pairings of writers and presidents are still being decided, among the highlights include: President Barack Obama on Abraham Lincoln, President Bill Clinton on Theodore Roosevelt, Chief Justice John Roberts on William Howard Taft, Secretary Condoleezza Rice on George H.W. Bush, First Lady Michelle Obama on Jackie Kennedy, First Lady Laura Bush on Lady Bird Johnson, Secretary Hillary Clinton on Eleanor Roosevelt, General Stanley McChrystal on U.S. Grant, Admiral William McRaven on Harry Truman, Ken Burns and Geoff Ward on Franklin D. Roosevelt, Jon Meacham on Andrew Jackson, Annette Gordon Reed on Andrew Johnson, Maria Shriver on Betty Ford, Sharon McMahon on William Henry Harrison, David Blight on Franklin Pierce, Bret Baier on Dwight Eisenhower, Joseph Ellis on Abigail Adams, Judy Woodruff on Rosalynn Carter, David Rubenstein on Jimmy Carter, Elizabeth Alexander on Michelle Obama, David Brooks on Ronald Reagan, and Doug Brinkley on Barack Obama, and others. I, personally, will be contributing an essay about former First Lady Florence Harding. (More on that to come.)
Over the years, scholarly work has pointed to the impact first ladies have had on the United States presidency, policy and society. Their contributions also will be spotlighted in this 250-year essay series.
First ladies have helped throughout the arc of American history as women slowly gained their rights and gained a voice in the public square leading them to become political actors of their own, according to Anita McBride, co-chair of In Pursuit and founder and director of the First Ladies Initiative at American University. “They have contributed in so many ways, in every facet of our American society and culture furthering the nation,” she said.
The initiative comes at a time when surveys show concerning statistics about Americans.
In 2022, a survey conducted by the Anneberg Public Policy Center showed less than half of adults in the United States (47%) could name all three branches of government, which was down from 56% in 2021. The decline, according to the American Bar Association, coincided with a drop in public engagement and trust in the political system. Currently, an average 33% of U.S. adults express “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in 14 institutions, marking a three-percentage-point dip since 2020 and a return to the level seen in 2018 and 2019, according to a 2021 Gallup survey.
The response to the need was recognized this week with major philanthropic funders including the Bezos Family Foundation, the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Stand Together announcing more than $56 million to support civics education.
In Pursuit’s goal is to close that educational gap and to begin by trying to reach 10 million Americans of which 5 million are students kindergarten through college age, said Shogan, hoping the initiative will trigger “a cultural breakthrough.”
“It’s very important for kids to have civics education because that lays the groundwork for them as they become adults and engage in the responsibilities of citizenship,” Shogan says. “We also view civics education as something that never ends.”
McBride agreed the work has to start with students, especially in light of the political assassination of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk during a public appearance on Sept. 10 at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah.
“This past week has rocked a lot of students to their core,” McBride said. “Whatever we can do at any of these institutions, any of these opportunities to engage in education about our democracy and try and drive everyone toward a greater willingness to engage in civil discourse is important.”
All together, More Perfect works with more than 100 organizations working to advance five foundational goals of democracy: universal civic learning, expanding national service and volunteering, bridging divides and building trust, trusted elections and more representation and responsive governance, and access to trusted news and information.
In addition to the essays, In Pursuit is working with iCivics and the Bill of Rights Institute to develop lesson plans and materials derived from the essays, including short videos that will be distributed on prominent educational platforms. The initiative will also work with State Humanities Councils, presidential centers and foundations, libraries, universities and other community organizations to host discussion groups and other opportunities as people gather to mark America’s 250th anniversary.
This is not the first time in the nation’s history that Americans have been politically divided. But, leaning into that divided narrative, said Shogan, serves a lot of purposes on social media and helps fuel a lot of television air time these days. Yet, it glosses over things people actually agree on.
“In Pursuit, is betting on the fact that we’re going to want to lean into what they agree upon and learn something together,” she said.