Citizenship Counts

American non-partisan organization

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Citizenship Counts

Established| 2007
Founder| Gerda Weissmann Klein
Location|

* P.O Box 805, Voorhees, NJ 08043

Executive Director

| Alysa Cooper
Website| citizenshipcounts.org

Citizenship Counts is a non-partisan 501(c)(3) organization based in Arizona.

## History

[edit]

The origins of Citizenship Counts trace back to October 2004, when Holocaust survivor Gerda Weissmann Klein spoke at a naturalization ceremony hosted by Three Rivers Middle School in Cleveland, Ohio. Following the event, Klein discussed the experience with her granddaughter, Alysa Ullman Cooper, and Rita Schaefer, then-president of McDougal Littell, an educational publishing company. After learning that Klein and Cooper were invited to attend a naturalization ceremony at the White House, Schaefer encouraged the development of an educational program to teach students about the naturalization process.

In February 2008, the civics-based curriculum The Path to Citizenship was published. Citizenship Counts was subsequently founded in August 2008 to implement the curriculum in educational settings across the country.[1][2]

On March 23, 2009, the organization conducted its inaugural naturalization ceremony at the Phoenix Convention Center in Arizona. The event featured the swearing-in of 50 individuals representing 26 countries. The "Oath of Allegiance" was administered by retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. [1]

## Board members

[edit]

Citizenship Counts has a variety of educational, political, business, and community leaders who serve on its advisory or governing boards. [citation needed]

### Advisory board

[edit]

* The Honorable Sandra Day O'Connor, retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice
* Kirk Ankeney, Executive Director for Curriculum and Instruction for the San Diego Unified School District
* Dr. Jesus Garcia, former President of the National Council for the Social Studies
* Carlos M. Gutierrez, former United States Secretary of Commerce 35th Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce
* Sam Harris, former President of Northbrook United Way of America, author, and Holocaust survivor
* Benjamin Johnson, Executive Director of the American Immigration Lawyers Association
* Thomas H. Kirk, Jr., former Deputy Commander of Special Forces in Europe
* Carrie Martz, former CEO and Founder of The Martz Agency
* Ted McConnell, Executive Director of the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools
* Marney Murphy
* Jason Steinagle

### Board of directors

[edit]

* Roger Cohen
* Dr. Eric Mondschein
* Syd Golston
* Don Streets
* Jim Ullman

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b www.bizjournals.com https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2009/03/23/daily13.html. Retrieved 2023-07-12. `{{cite web}}`: Missing or empty `|title=` (help)
2. ^ "Flag Day ceremony welcomes 20 new U.S. citizens". National Museum of American History. 2011-06-15. Retrieved 2023-07-12.