Connecticut Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas has announced the launch of her Civically Engaged Organization (CEO) program, which is designed to encourage businesses and nonprofit organizations to commit to civically engagement through local community participation or by helping to raise public and employee civic awareness.
In an interview with the Business Journals, Thomas ”“ a former business owner and state representative from Norwalk”™s 143rd District ”“ said the inspiration for the CEO program began shortly after she began her Secretary of the State position in January.
“When I got here to the secretary’s office, I saw that we have our elections division and our business division, and they felt very separated,” she said. “That got me thinking: what is the commonality? I realized that so many organizations are good civic citizens in their communities, and I thought, ”˜Wouldn’t it be interesting if we could take what they’re already doing, and just ask them to do a little more to help educate either their employees or customers about civic engagement?”™ ”“ which is one of the major pillars of why I ran for this office.”
Thomas defined civic engagement as being more than a passive or indifferent observer to how localities and the state operates.
“Basically, the easiest way to define it is community involvement,” she continued. “My end goal is to make sure more people are voting. But it’s also about understanding how government works. It’s about understanding your place in the community, and how you can help in this notion that we all rise together. So, for me, civic engagement could be anything from doing a neighborhood cleanup to running for office or showing up on Election Day.”
Thomas envisioned the CEO initiative as “great way to build morale” within companies and organizations, observing that many younger employees are eager to establish “a more thoughtful sort of corporate culture.” Having businesses and nonprofits encourage voter education and participation, both within their organizations and in their communities. is a central focus of Thomas”™ CEO program, and she encouraged employers to ensure their staff has time to vote on Election Day.
Thomas added that her office conducted focus groups ahead of the CEO program”™s official launch.
“There wasn’t one that said, ”˜I hate this idea,”™” she said. “What they said was, ”˜As long as you make it easy for us, this is great because we want to do this anyway. If you can get us the tools and get us the social media posts and tell us how to do these things, we’re happy to help spread the word.”™”
Any Connecticut-based organization can become a CEO by agreeing to pledge to E.N.G.A.G.E., with the acronym defined through the following activities:
â— Email the Office”™s non-partisan “Civics 101” document to staff and/or customers.
â— Note dates of elections in the office/workplace and/or in newsletters.
â— Give employees time off to vote on Election Days if their schedules don”™t allow for before or after hours voting.
â— Announce the organization”™s commitment to civic engagement via email and social media.
â— Give employees time to volunteer in the community each year.
â— Email or post a polling place look-up tool for employees.
Upon pledging to E.N.G.A.G.E., organizations will receive a certificate and digital badge from Thomas”™ office, along with a CEO toolkit that includes a “Civics 101” document and templates for press releases, social media posts, and newsletters. The CEO has, as of this writing, already attracted nearly three dozen companies and organizations that pledged to participate; those interested in participation can find more information at CEOPledge.ct.gov.
