Step One: Choose ONE issue. The sites listed for each issue can assist you in your research.

Issue One: Students who qualify for free and reduced lunch in your school district do not have access to healthy food options on weekends, on school holidays, and during the summer break.

-National School Lunch Program
-Let’s Move
-Healthy School Meals

Issue Two: Bullying in your local schools and on social media is negatively affecting students’ academic performance and mental health.

-School Bullying Linked to Lower Academic Achievement
-The Mental Health Impact of Bullying on Kids and Teens

Issue Three: Tobacco and substance abuse by 13-to-18 years olds has reached an all-time high in your area.

-Trends in Tobacco Use Among Youth
-Smoking and Youth

Step Two:
After you have conducted research:

-Identify the solution and criteria.
-Identify public policy alternatives.
-Evaluate all policy alternatives.
-Choose the best public policy alternative.
-Make your citizen action plan.

Step 1: Identify the Issue: Choose an issue from the list provided
Step 2: Conduct Background Research: What did you learn about the issue from this research? What sources did you use?
Sources:
Step 3: Identify the Solution and Criteria: What is the ultimate goal for this issue? For example, if we were discussing reducing the number of feral cats in our neighborhood, the goal would be to see no or fewer feral cats.
Goal:
Step 4: Identify Public Policy Alternatives: What actions can the government take to solve this problem? List two examples of possible public policy options for solving your issue.
1.
2.
Step 5: Evaluate All Policy Alternatives: Complete the chart below to identify one positive and one negative for each of your public policy ideas from Step 4. Public Policy Idea Positives Negatives
Step 6: Choose the Best Public Policy Alternative Looking at the positives and negatives of each public policy idea above, which option do you think would be best for solving your chosen problem and why?
Step 7: Make Your Citizen Action Plan: Write one paragraph to summarize your research and your plan to solve this problem. Your paragraph should be three-to-five sentences long and include the following information: ·
-Which issue did you choose?
-What have you learned from your research about why this issue is a problem?
-What public policy do you believe should be used to solve this problem and why?