In collaboration with the ACC Center for Government and Civic Service, Center Director, Bryan Port, will present on the topic of civic engagement at the Hays and Riverside Libraries. During this presentation we will define civic engagement and consider why it is important in both the best of times and even more so in troubled times. Participants will be challenged to consider an issue that is important to them and how to define specific objectives and actionable recommendations for civic engagement regarding that objective. Our focus will be on small changes that can achieve outsized results over time. We will consider how one can begin to gain traction and efficacy at a local level and with manageable investments of time, energy, and material resources. Our goal is for participants to come away from the event with actionable ideas for how they can start making a difference in their communities.
This guide provides links to library resources to support work and research on this topic, as well as to resources that may assist you as you investigate causes and issues of interest to you.
Scan the QR code above or click here to register!
In January 2024 I started a new job standing up the Center for Government and Civic Service at Austin Community College (ACC). I also teach history at ACC while I continue to work on a PhD in American History at the University of Texas at Austin. I am now in “All But Dissertation” (ABD) status and working on my dissertation on the American conceptualization of the national interest. This past January I retired from the U.S. Department of Defense after 30 years of combined military and civil service. There I served as a Strategist and Asian affairs specialist. My last assignment was as a Senior Advisor for Strategy to the Director of the Futures and Concepts Center, U.S. Army Futures Command (AFC). Prior to coming to AFC, I spent two years in the Defense Senior Leader Development Program (DSLDP), to include a fellowship at the Office of Net Assessment. Other assignments include serving as Director of Strategy to the four-star commander of U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), Combined Forces Command (CFC), and United Nations Command (UNC) in the Republic of Korea (ROK) from 2009-2017. Prior to this and dating back to 1995, I served in a variety of capacities as an intelligence officer, both on active duty in the Army and as a civil servant. This included operational, staff and leadership assignments in the United States, Republic of Korea, Iraq, Afghanistan, and multiple Asian nations. I have received multiple awards, commendations and medals, including commendations by the U.S. Secretary of Defense and ROK Minister of National Defense. I also completed the Harvard Senior Executive Fellowship program, the Defense Language Institute’s Korean Language program, advanced language training at Yonsei University, and multiple operational and leadership courses. I earned a BA in Political Science from of the University of California at Santa Cruz, MA in National Security Studies from Georgetown University, and an MS in National Security Strategy from the National War College. I am now ABD working on a PhD in American History at the University of Texas at Austin.