Rutgers Democracy Lab

Rutgers Democracy Lab Director Nick Longo was quoted in The Christian Science Monitor discussing the importance of teaching civic skills to young adults.

🔗 Visit the link in our bio to read the full article

Today, we welcomed our Summer 2026 RDL interns and digital content creators as they kicked off their first day with the Lab! 🎉

We can’t wait to see the creativity, ideas, and perspectives they’ll bring to the Lab this summer. Here’s to a great first day and an even better summer ahead! ☀️

Last Friday, we had the pleasure of gathering at the Rutgers Club for dinner as part of our inaugural national convening on civic learning in higher education.

Students, staff, researchers, community builders, and national leaders came together for an engaging evening filled with great company, meaningful relationship-building, thoughtful conversation, and, of course, delicious food!

A special thank you to for joining us and offering thoughtful welcoming remarks, and to for delivering a truly thought-provoking keynote address🙌

On April 23, the RDL hosted its first-ever Showcase, highlighting the work, ideas, and collaborations shaping democracy-focused research and engagement across Rutgers.

The Showcase featured student poster presentations alongside lightning talks from our Faculty & Staff Associates, highlighting the many ways they’re making a difference through hands-on democratic engagement and research in action.

A huge thank you to our poster presenters and speakers for their hard work—and to everyone who joined us and supported the Showcase.👏

To see more photos from the Showcase, check out the full photo gallery on our Flickr (link in bio🔗)

Check out RDL Director, Nick Longo’s new op-ed in over the weekend on commitment to teaching conversation skills to overcome political division.

Read the full piece at the link in bio 🔗

🗣️New Opportunity with Rutgers University Talking Across Difference

We are recruiting a team of paid student fellows to a one-year fellowship to support the Talking Across Difference initiative’s in-person and virtual programming across Rutgers–New Brunswick campus. TAD is a university-wide initiative meant to equip educators, staff, and students to have productive conversations about difficult and sometimes divisive issues. TAD Fellows have the opportunity to play a leading role by organizing and leading programming to foster respectful dialogue across campus.

Learn more and apply by May 8, 2026 at the link in bio.

Think college students can’t make a difference? Think again! Swipe to see a few examples of times when youth activism created real change within our democracy➡️

On Tuesday night, we kicked off Solving Grand Challenges Month by bringing our community together for a special preview of the student-led Common Grounds Cafe—a third space for conversation and connection on campus 🤝☕

Students and staff reflected on their projects, shared what we’ve learned over the past year, and reimagined what’s possible for our democracy moving forward 💬✨

A huge thank you to the team and to all of our wonderful students and staff who made this event possible! 🙌

Dr. Nicholas Longo was featured in Rutgers Today to discuss his bold vision for how the Rutgers Democracy Lab will prepare students to engage in civic life through experiential learning.

🔗 Visit the link in our bio to read the full story!