Nebraska Civic Health Index Results Released

by WOWT-NBC

Thursday, the first-ever Civic Health Index for the state of Nebraska was released to document NebraskansÕ rates of interacting with neighbors, communicating with family and friends, being members of groups, volunteering and giving, registering and voting and being involved in politics. ÒNebraska shows clear strengths but also clear areas of need in our stateÕs civic health,Ó said Adam Morfeld, Executive Director of Nebraskans for Civic Reform, the lead partner organization of the Nebraska Civic Health Partnership. ÒCivic health is something we all own together, and something that will create strong, vibrant and economically successful communities across the state.Ó The results show that in relation to other states, Nebraskans enjoy strong civic health, particularly in activities related to social connectedness Ð 82.3% interact with family or friends frequently Ð and confidence in institutions Ð more than 90% of Nebraskans are confident in public schools, 5th highest nationally. The stateÕs weakest area of civic health is political involvement, ranking 36th out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia in voter participation. 12.2% of Nebraskans reporting that they contact public officials. The report data was obtained primarily from the 2012 and 2013 U.S. Census Bureau Current Population Surveys on Voting, Volunteering and Civic Engagement collected in partnership with the Corporation for National & Community Service. The index provides data-backed action steps to strengthen civic health including: 1. Continue to grow the strong tradition of connecting all Nebraskans. 2. Create and promote accessible networks for community engagement. 3. Activate Nebraskans to register and vote by modernizing the process. 4. Increase interaction between elected representatives and constituents. 5. Prioritize civic education that fosters civic action for all students in Nebraska. ~1@BODYURL[id=114jbcurl1327]@