An interview with Julianna Dotten, author of Colorado Civics

As a homeschool graduate, what motivated you to write this curriculum? 

Julianna: Our culture desperately needs young people who care about the state of the family, the state of the church, and the state of the nation. We as homeschooled students have been given the tremendous gift of not only unparalleled freedom in the history of the world but also an educational context in which we can make the most of that freedom.

The question is, what will we do with the weight of the responsibility and opportunity that lies before us? Immense debt requires immense sacrifice. But how can we sacrifice (or make any difference at all?) if we are ignorant of the fundamental issues our country is facing?

Ultimately, that is what motivated me to write Colorado Civics. I pray that God would raise up a generation of young people who care passionately about their future, their God, and their country. That is the purpose of civics­—passing on the baton of godly citizenship to the next generation.

My own life has been transformed by the study of history, and I believe as we step into the gripping story of the founding of our own nation, we will discover an excitement for what God will do in the future of our land.

In the end, civics is so much more than a subject to check off. It’s a story. A story of a nation filled with heroes, villains, and more often than not, ordinary people that did extraordinary deeds that shaped the future of America. As we engage this story, we will find ourselves becoming a part of it, shaping future generations as we ultimately work to build a Kingdom that is not of this world.

What is your vision for this curriculum?

Julianna: As I was researching and writing the book, my prayer was that God would use my efforts, however imperfect, to at least motivate one homeschool student to do great things for God in the area of politics.

Now, I realize that politics is not everyone’s calling. Actually, God has me in a season right now where I can’t do much more than stay informed and vote in a God-honoring manner. And that’s okay. But as members of a representative republic, we don’t have an option about whether or not to be involved.

Or as I said in the introduction to my book, “those who do nothing and would rather have the government spoon-feed them will find tyranny at the end of the spoon.” Political involvement is not optional, especially for the Christian.

My vision in writing this curriculum has been to reveal the foundations of godly citizenship, whether that looks like running for governor or simply going to the polls. It is crucial that the coming generation has both a historically accurate and a biblical view of the principles that founded our nation. Only when we understand God’s ideal for government will we be able to influence our culture to return to those principles.