Fired Archivist Colleen Shogan Launches 'More Perfect' to Strengthen Democracy

Crisis in Civics Education

• 📉 Colleen Shogan highlights a crisis in civics education, with alarming statistics showing only 22% of eighth graders are proficient and 70% of adults unable to answer basic civics questions.
• ❓ Basic questions include understanding the branches of government and their functions, such as writing laws.

'More Perfect' Initiative

• 🤝 Shogan has launched a national bipartisan effort called "More Perfect" aimed at strengthening democracy.
• 🏛️ This initiative is part of an alliance involving 34 presidential centers and approximately 100 other groups.
• 🎯 The project's tagline, "We call our nation the great American experiment. It's time to act like it," serves as a call to action to learn from history.

Accessing History Through Presidents

• 📚 Shogan's new project, "In Pursuit," features essays from former presidents, first ladies, historians, and journalists, offering a way to access American history through presidents and first families.
• 💡 This approach is seen as a familiar and accessible entry point for people to learn lessons about American history.
• 🗣️ She observed that people from all political affiliations are proud of American history and want to learn from its mixture of successes and challenges.

Accuracy and Independence in History

• ⚖️ Shogan emphasizes the need for accuracy in telling American history, including both failures and successes, to fully understand achievements like Abraham Lincoln's leadership.
• 🏛️ She stresses that institutions preserving and sharing national history, like the Smithsonian, must remain independent to be successful.

Experience as Archivist

• 🗓️ Shogan made history as the first female Archivist of the United States in 2023 but was fired by President Trump in February without warning or reason.
• ❓ She was surprised and disappointed by her dismissal, especially since she was following the law and performing her job.
• 📉 Shogan also expressed concern over proposed budget cuts to the National Archives, arguing that the institution needs to grow its budget to handle the upcoming deluge of born-digital records and maintain public access.