The Jack Miller Center and Miami Dade College partner to launch new fellowship program

The year-long program includes two in-person graduate-level seminars to engage faculty in discussion on the key ideas and documents that shape the American Political Tradition.

By The Jack Miller Center

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MIAMI, FL—The Jack Miller Center (JMC) is proud to announce a new partnership with Miami Dade College (MDC)—the largest institution of higher education in the country—to provide MDC faculty access to rigorous, content-rich graduate education at no cost.

The Jack Miller Center Fellowship Program at MDC is a bold, year-long project made possible through a $100,000 gift from longtime JMC supporters and Miamians, Julie and Michael Weiser, through the Greiner Weiser Family Foundation. Michael Weiser, who serves as the Chair of the Jack Miller Center’s Board of Directors, says this is just the beginning.

“We want this to be a catalytic investment that transforms education at our nation’s community colleges,” said Michael Weiser. “These institutions are a vital part of the higher education landscape—serving 41% of all college students—yet their classrooms and faculty often receive too little attention. The Jack Miller Center is building a model for change, and there’s no better place to do that than with the largest and most diverse institution of higher education in the country.”

The program includes two in-person graduate-level seminars to engage faculty in discussion on the key ideas and documents that shape the American Political Tradition. Sessions include discussions on the Federalist and Anti-Federalist debate, Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America, and Enlightenment political thought. It also includes sessions focused on classroom application including a syllabus redesign workshop, a discussion of key US court cases, and workshops on running a Model Senate or classroom debate program. The first program begins this week with a two-day syllabus workshop in Miami.

MDC has long prioritized faculty professional development as a cornerstone of its strategic imperatives around educational excellence and student success.

“At MDC, we are deeply committed to ensuring that students have access to an education that not only prioritizes essential skills for the future work but also promotes civic engagement and a sense of shared purpose,” said Miami Dade College President Madeline Pumariega. By empowering our faculty through enriching opportunities such as the Jack Miller Center Fellowship, we are directly impacting the paths of tens of thousands of MDC students, helping to inspire the next generation of thought leaders.

Together, the Jack Miller Center and Miami Dade College are setting a new standard for civic education in America’s community colleges.

“The opportunity to read primary sources and actually to take the time to examine the origins and development of the American Political Tradition are too often the preserve only of an elite liberal arts education,” said Jonathan Gondelman, assistant director of the American Political Tradition Project at the Jack Miller Center and lead on the Community College Initiative. “We think every student should have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the history and original arguments for American government, rather than merely to read summaries of them in textbooks. Our programs are designed to give faculty the resources to teach primary sources more confidently, as well as to provide faculty themselves with the opportunity to argue and discuss texts with each other, something they may not have been able to do since graduate school.”

“The Jack Miller Center Fellowship program represents a powerful investment in both our faculty and the future of our community,” said Dr. Malou C. Harrison, Miami Dade College’s Executive Vice President and Provost. “We’re not only teaching history and civics, but equally important we’re advancing the public good by fostering informed, engaged citizens.”