Edward M. Kennedy Institute
Project Title
For project support of the Virtual and In-Person Senate Immersion Module for students
Date
Mar. 05, 2026
Duration
24 months
Description
Many students lack opportunities to engage with democratic processes and institutions, leaving them unprepared for civic participation. Since 2015, the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate (EMKI) has addressed this gap through its flagship Senate Immersion Module (SIM), an experiential program in which students act as senators, debate public issues, negotiate compromises, and participate in all stages of lawmaking in a full-scale Senate Chamber replica. Supported by pre- and post-visit lessons on negotiation, lawmaking, and civil discourse, SIM builds civic skills such as reasoning, dialogue, and consensus-building. With Carnegie support, EMKI will expand access through two initiatives: the development of a new Virtual Senate Immersion Module (V-SIM), expected to serve 25 student groups (approximately 1,000 students) in its first year once developed, and the expansion of in-person SIM from four to five program days per week, increasing annual reach from 8,000 to at least 9,200 students and engaging roughly 18,000 students over the two-year grant period, which will allow EMKI to engage more low-income students both in Massachusetts and nationally.