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"Whether you realize it or not as an athlete, you have a great impact and influence amongst peers and young people and others and this is a time to use it." - Senator Cory Booker

Watch Senator Cory Booker, former Stanford football player, talk about his belief that "Democracy is not a Spectator Sport."

After you watch this short video, discuss how your team how will "get on the field" to support Democracy.

“The WNBA’s impact on the 2020 Senate race is not singular, but it’s undeniable…The WNBA changed history.” Watch HBO Films Level Up documentary "The Assist," a 20 minute film about how the WNBA and the Atlanta Dream channeled its influence to organize, inspire, and mobilize votes in the 2020 Georgia Senate Race. Following the film, ask your team to reflect on what they did, how they did it, and what actions you can take to become "the assist" for your community.

Tufts University’s CIRCLE's National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement (NSLVE) tracks voter registration and voting rates on your campus or geographic area! Assign players to take a look at the data and present at “stats report” on your school to see how you can make the biggest difference. It also tracks the highest areas of impact for the youth vote in 2022. Consider turning it into a contest with other neighboring schools to see if you can generate a bump in positive engagement rates!

Athletes are natural leaders, garnering influence well beyond their sport. P/Ath Sports offers short video clips from sports greats on life skills that have helped them live authentic, fulfilling, and purpose-filled lives. Watch one or more of their videos and use their reflective prompts to foster new conversations and learning within your team.

Ted Lasso may be a fictional coach on Apple TV, but his infectious positivity, empathy for others, and enduring belief in his players and team has inspired us all. One of his underlying principles is "Be Curious. Not Judgmental." How can you be more curious about your teammates, your coaches, your support team to learn more about them as people, not just players. How can you learn more about what you "Believe" in?

SAACs are the student advisory committees that represent student-athlete voices to NCAA leadership. Ask your team: Do you know who your SAAC representative is? How do their beliefs and actions align with your values? How can you contribute to or influence their decisions? Learn more about them here and consider reaching out to get to know them or follow them on social media to keep up with their activities and positions.

Are you a Builder? Networker? Investigator? Resister? Communicator? Have your players take the Civic Superpower Quiz from Civic Season to learn more about their natural styles of leading and how those characteristics have helped fuel influential leaders in history.

Watch Eric Liu, CEO of Citizen University, give a TED Talk on why voting matters, and how it brought joy to different communities. Discuss ways that your players might reframe and engage with voting as a joyful, community experience.

Netflix created a new collection of video shorts on reimagining civic education through the work of contemporary singers and performers. Pick one or more, watch with the team, and discuss its significance. Feeling nostalgic? Check out the original Schoolhouse Rock: American Rock Edition for jazzy animated renditions of civic foundations.

Watch a documentary on an athletic “civic leader.” Examples include: Muhammed Ali, Billie Jean King, Arthur Ashe, Lebron James, Jackie Robinson, Bill Russell, and Megan Rapinoe, among others. Discuss how these athletes flexed their civic muscles and skills for positive impact. Check out this starter list of movie ideas.

Watch, read, and discuss a story about sports activism, where teams take on an issue to promote positive change. Examples include the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team's campaign for equal pay, the WNBA and NBA’s push to use their arenas for safe voting, and Olympic athletes widening conversations about access mental health support.

In this award-winning podcast, comedian, host, and producer Baratunde Thurston reimagines the word “citizen” as a verb and reminds us how to wield our collective power. Consider starting with his Season 1, Episode 1 talk with Eric Liu.

Written by award-winning historian Jon Meacham and narrated by NBA legend Doc Rivers, this podcast explores six of the most historic, inspiring, and moving speeches in sports history. Ask your team to listen to one or more of the episodes, and have a conversation about what makes these speeches so powerful.

Learning how to tell fact from fiction is a critical skill in an era of information overload. Just because it's on the internet, or has a lot of likes, doesn't mean it's true! The Stanford History Education Group has created simple tools to help all citizens figure out how to sift the truth from the noise. Start here with 3 minute video primer on how to think like a fact-checker to ensure that you're always on top of the most up-to-date, factual information.

We tend to think about civics as a one day event that happens on Election Day, but there are opportunities and notable calendar events related to civics all year long. Check out this robust calendar and list of activities from Civics Season and ask how your team can get involved beyond Election Day, starting with Juneteenth, National Voter Registration Day, Constitution Day, National Voter Education week, or even Election Hero Day when we honor all of those that volunteer to keep our elections safe and fair.

Compete to become the next President of the United States by playing iCivics' award-winning Win the White House game. Build arguments to support issues that matter to you, strategically raise funds to support your campaign, keep campaign momentum going through targeted media campaigns and personal appearances, poll local voters on issues of import, and win enough electoral votes to become President!

Watch a documentary about voting rights from this list. Consider John Lewis’ story in “Good Trouble,” “The Vote” about securing the right for all women to vote, and “Slay the Dragon,” about the connection of gerrymandering to the Flint, Michigan water crisis. Curious to explore how values can be shared across difference? Check out Citizen Film's documentary American Creed.

Plan a field trip to a meaningful spot on campus, local museum, or historic monument or environmental site to prompt conversation and meaning. Check your campus, community, or local chamber of commerce for suggestions on where to go that is historically significant to your team. Or, consider hosting a virtual history museum tour with your team with one of these sites.​​