Making Democracy Work: Strengthening Institutions, Engaging Communities, Empowering Citizens
Regional Summits on Issues that Matter
THursday, May 28, 2026 | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Ware Center
On-site/same day registration available.
Event Details:
Millersville University will host its 6th Annual Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Conference on Thursday, May 28, 2026, focusing on "Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions". This one-day conference will take place at The Ware Center in downtown Lancaster, PA from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm, bringing together policymakers, community leaders and advocates, agency heads and staff, and educators to address one of today's most pressing social challenges.
The conference aims to facilitate meaningful dialogue on innovative solutions, best practices, and resource sharing to promote peace, justice, and community safety in alignment with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions.
The day-long event will include:
- Demystify election administration by bringing county-level officials and state election experts into direct conversation with educators, community leaders, and citizens — grounding the day in how democratic systems actually work, not rhetoric about how they should work.
- Feature nonpartisan, practitioner-led sessions that focus on system design, structural challenges, and institutional resilience — avoiding partisan talking points and instead equipping attendees with knowledge they can apply in their communities.
- Provide educators with classroom-ready civics resources and strategies developed in partnership with organizations like the Pennsylvania Council for the Social Studies and local school districts.
- Showcase sustainable journalism models — such as Spotlight PA and Votebeat — alongside traditional local outlets to demonstrate how communities can rebuild information infrastructure even as legacy media declines.
- Create space for student voices through a dedicated student panel where high school and university students share their perspectives on civic education and democratic engagement, ensuring the day addresses the next generation's needs and questions.
- Facilitate cross-sector dialogue among policymakers, journalists, educators, election officials, legal experts, and civic organizations — building the relationships and shared understanding necessary for collaborative problem-solving.
- Distribute takeaway resources including policy briefs, curriculum materials, and contact lists for ongoing partnerships — ensuring the conference's impact extends well beyond June 2026.
This event is hosted by the Office of Community Engagement, Governmental, and Economic Development (CEGED), the Millersville University School of Social Work, and the Office of Sustainability.
Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, 193 world leaders committed to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These are a series of ambitious objectives and targets to address poverty and hunger, fight inequality and injustice, and tackle climate change, by 2030.
A few years into the aggressive agenda, there is evidence of progress across the private and nonprofit sectors, and within federal, state, and local governments. Civil society is translating this shared vision into plans and strategies. The Sustainable Development Goals are the blueprint for achieving a better and more sustainable future for all.
Millersville University’s Link to United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
Millersville University has adopted the UN SDGs as an action item in our 2025 Strategic Plan – “Tradition and Transformation.” By 2025, we seek to expand curricular and co-curricular experiences that support Sustainable Development Goals. We also recognize our public mission to enhance the economic and social well-being of our region by advancing knowledge transfer and best practices. Hosting annual conferences of practitioners, policy leaders, and community advocates to support a shared understanding of the SDGs and accelerate the adoption of best practices aligns with our public mission and our strategic goals.
Learn more about the conference by contacting the Office of Community Engagement, Governmental and Economic Development at 717-871-5955 or Victor.Desantis@millersville.edu.
-
Proposed Conference Schedule
Morning Keynote
How Elections Actually Work: The Systems Behind the Vote
A foundational session that demystifies Pennsylvania election administration — voter registration, ballot processing, tabulation, and certification at the county level. This keynote sets the stage for the day by grounding attendees in practical, nonpartisan knowledge about how democratic systems function before moving into more nuanced discussions. Timely context: Pennsylvania is currently updating its 22-year-old voter registration system (SURE), and county election directors navigate a patchwork of procedures that vary significantly across the commonwealth's 67 counties.
Morning Breakout Sessions (4 concurrent sessions)
- Election Administration and Reform in Pennsylvania
A practitioner-focused session featuring county election officials and state reform advocates discussing the real challenges they face: Pennsylvania lacks true early voting; voter registration transfers between counties use an 1800s-era process; counties have widely varying procedures for mail ballot processing. The session will also address where reform efforts currently stand in the state legislature, including recent proposals on automatic voter registration, pre-canvassing timelines, and election security measures. - Transparency, Public Trust, and the Limits of Open Government
Explores the tension between transparency and other democratic values. Recent Pennsylvania court rulings have created a new route to pierce the secrecy of some mail ballots, raising genuine questions about how to balance open-records principles with the constitutional right to ballot secrecy. The session will examine how other states handle this balance, what Pennsylvania's options are, and how transparency can strengthen — rather than undermine — public trust. Nonpartisan by design: it's about system architecture, not partisan outcomes. - Student Voices: What Does Democracy Look Like From Here?
A student panel featuring high school and Millersville University students presenting their perspectives on civic education and democratic engagement. Students will share what's working in civics education, what feels disconnected from their lived experience, and what they want to know about how democracy functions. This session gives educators and practitioners authentic feedback from the generation democracy is supposed to serve — and positions students as active contributors to the day's dialogue. - Covering Democracy: How Local Journalists Keep Communities Informed
A panel discussion addressing the structural challenge of diminished local news coverage. In Pennsylvania, two counties have lost all news sources entirely, and many rural outlets are down to one or two reporters. Spotlight PA was founded specifically to address this crisis. The panel — featuring local print/digital journalists, nonprofit newsroom representatives (Spotlight PA, Pennsylvania Capital-Star), and journalism educators — will discuss coverage triage strategies, new models (nonprofit, collaborative journalism), and the civic consequences of news deserts.
Afternoon Keynote
Strengthening Democratic Institutions for the Next Generation
A forward-looking session that ties the day's themes together and asks the bigger question: how do we collectively sustain the norms and institutions democracy depends on — and what roles do education, media, civic organizations, and citizens play in that work? This keynote synthesizes the morning's foundational discussions into a shared call to action, focusing on institutional resilience, civic education, and community-level solutions.Afternoon Breakout Sessions (4 concurrent sessions)
- Combating Misinformation and Protecting Public Discourse
Examines the role of AI-generated content in elections, media literacy challenges, and what local institutions can do to counter misinformation. Common Cause Pennsylvania is actively advocating for robust AI-generated content disclosure requirements, and newsrooms like Spotlight PA are developing AI-assisted voter tools with human fact-checking built in. The session will provide practical strategies for educators, librarians, and community organizations working to build public resilience against false information. - Civic Engagement and Voter Access
Focused on the structural and logistical barriers to participation — Pennsylvania's closed primary system, low municipal election turnout, mail-in ballot processing challenges, and community efforts to close access gaps. The session will feature practitioners discussing what's working on the ground: voter registration drives, poll worker recruitment, community education campaigns, and legislative advocacy. Designed to leave attendees with actionable strategies they can implement in their own communities. - Teaching Democracy in a Polarized Classroom
An educator-focused session designed so teachers leave with strategies and classroom-ready resources they can implement immediately. The session will feature teachers sharing successful approaches, explore curriculum resources like the Bill of Rights Institute's "Government and Politics: Civics for the American Experiment" and Pennsylvania's Act 35 Civics Toolkit, and provide networking opportunities for civics educators across the region. Addresses the real challenge of teaching controversial civic topics in a way that builds critical thinking without advocacy. - The Courts as Democratic Guardrails: Understanding the Role of an Independent Judiciary
Examines how Pennsylvania's courts serve as a check on the other branches of government, using the 2025 retention elections as a case study. The Pennsylvania Commission on Judicial Independence — established by the Supreme Court to foster public understanding of the judiciary — could serve as a natural partner. The session will walk through Pennsylvania's retention election model, recent major court rulings on election laws and redistricting, and why an independent judiciary matters for democratic stability. Focuses on structural and institutional questions rather than specific case outcomes.
- Election Administration and Reform in Pennsylvania
-
Program Bios
Learn more about your speakers for May 28, 2026Coming soon.
-
Ticketing
Follow Link for TicketsComing soon.
-
Location and Parking
Logistic and Venue DetailsThe Ware Center – Millersville University
42 N. Prince St.
Lancaster, PA 17603
717 871-7018Millersville University's Ware Center is Lancaster’s premier performing arts center. Located on Lancaster’s famous Gallery Row, our mission is to foster creativity, learning, and understanding in our great community.
Parking: Event parking at the Ware Center can be found at the Prince Street Garage (corner of Prince and Orange) or the Hager surface lot, both of which are within a block of our facility.
-
Where to stay and what to see in Lancaster
Start planning your trip at Discover Lancaster.
-
Press Release
Coming soon.