In order to practice social distancing and slow the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), public access to our building, 165 Capitol Avenue, will be restricted. Although in-person interactions will be limited, our office staff will be available via email as normal. For the Business Services Division email CRD@ct.gov and for the Legislative & Elections Administration Division email LEAD@ct.gov. We apologize for the inconvenience and hope to return to normal business as soon as the immediate threat to public health has subsided.

Civic engagement has been a prominent feature of Secretary Merrill’s administration. At the start of her first term in 2011, she called together Connecticut’s Civic Health Advisory Group, the focus of which has been to measure and increase our state’s civic engagement. In 2012, the Office of the Secretary of the State launched the Connecticut Election Project, an interdisciplinary classroom curriculum teaching the presidential election to students of all ages. However, Secretary Merrill’s interest in civic engagement has been a lifelong commitment.

Before becoming a legislator, she worked for the organization now known as Civics First, developing civics curricula for the classroom. Her interest in her own children’s education was the reason she decided to run for office, and the first seat she won was on her local board of education. Once in the legislature, then-Representative Merrill succeeded in passing a law mandating that civics be taught for at least one semester of high school in Connecticut. In the years she has served as Secretary of the State, Secretary Merrill has continued her focus on increasing civic engagement both in the classroom and in the community.

Civics in the Classroom

Civics in the Community