Welcome to American National Government

You are so lucky. You are so lucky to live in this nation where your parents and grandparents –-and generations before them—invested their tax dollars wisely. Government built the foundation for our productive economy, our strong military, and our truly innovative institutions from education, health care, and the arts to space exploration and the internet. Your parents and grandparents and those before them also invested in infrastructure that provides the basis for the economy. These are essentials like transportation, electricity, telecommunications, water treatment and pollution abatement. Your government affords citizens safety and opportunity, respects the environment, and protects fundamental civil rights and liberties.

You are so lucky to have the opportunity this term to look carefully at how the institutions of American government work. You are so lucky to be part of the process of policy making. Your views are part of public opinion. You can join organizations to influence policy making and become part of a special interest group. When you register to vote you can join one political party or the other. When you go to vote, you help to determine the leaders and policies that shape our nation’s future. When you study American government, you are learning about the process that influences the policies and actions that go on around you every day. The news illustrates in the real world what we study in the classroom. Listen to current events while you learn how you can shape the future.

You are so lucky to live in a society where your vote is just as important as anyone else’s. I hope the concepts you learn in this class will help you appreciate and use well the power that you hold.

Sincerely yours, Karen Levin