For over two centuries, the United States has depended on ordinary citizens as much (or more so) than government actions in order to thrive. What people do together for the common good often determines the quality of life in a community or spells the difference between thriving and struggling. This is civic health.

In this, the first–ever Maryland Civic Health Index, the Free State nds itself ahead of the national average on almost every major indicator of civic health. Marylanders are highly connected to information, discuss issues and politics often, and vote in greater proportions than the national average. More Maryland citizens are members of organized groups and are leaders of those groups than is the national norm.

However, for a state whose public education system is the first in the nation, according to Education Week , 1 that pioneered a number of civic literacy programs, that has an exemplary state university and community college system, that has one of the highest per capita median incomes in the nation, and that is Washington, D.C.'s closest neighbor — Maryland is not as highly ranked as one would expect it to be. On many measures, Maryland is not at the front but in the middle of the pack.

Indeed, while the top–line numbers give cause for satisfaction, a closer look in some areas reveals disparities where Maryland still has progress to make. Furthermore, in community conversations held in different locations throughout the state, participants pointed to an everyday life that is often lled with stress, which gets in the way of people fully entering and participating in public life.

This report, a collaboration between the Mannakee Circle Group, the Maryland Commission on Civic Literacy, Common Cause Maryland, the Center for Civic Education, and the National Conference on Citizenship (NCoC), is an analysis of state data that is included in the NCoC's 2010 America's Civic Health Index. The data that underlie the report were analyzed by the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) under the authority of the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act of 2009, which mandated the use of certain U.S. Census data to create such an annual index. 2

To augment the data analyzed by CIRCLE, the Maryland partner organizations convened several community conversations in different regions of the state to discuss civic health over the summer and early fall of 2010.

In addition, state partners (led by the Maryland Commission on Civic Literacy) sponsored Maryland's first–ever Civic Literacy Summit. At the Summit, several hundred Maryland educators, leaders, and citizens reected on the state's civic health and made a series of recommendations for ways to improve it. They fall into four broad suggestions:

1. Take concrete steps to improve individuals' connection with the civic life of Maryland, including more civic education efforts for youth, building on existing service–learning programs, and other capacity–building for adults.

2. Foster greater connectedness between and among citizens and the many constituent parts of communities, including local organizations, businesses, institutions, and others.

3. Explore more deeply areas where Maryland has yet to make civic progress, including cultural, economic, and other areas of disparity in participation.

4. Communicate more and highlight the importance of civic health, including disseminating the results of this report and establishing an annual civic literacy summit.

These and additional recommendations are provided in more detail in the report.