State Commissioner for Political Education Schleswig-Holstein

The State Commissioner for Political Education Schleswig-Holstein or his office in Schleswig-Holstein performs the tasks of the former State Center for Political Education . The office of the independent and non-partisan state commissioner is assigned to the President of the Schleswig-Holstein State Parliament . He is directly elected by the Schleswig-Holstein State Parliament for six years . Christian Meyer-Heidemann has held this position as the first elected state representative since 2016.

history

In 1957, Minister of Culture Edo Osterloh established the so-called office of the State Commissioner for Citizenship Education in Schleswig-Holstein . In 1984 it was renamed the “State Center for Political Education”. Not quite two decades later, in 2003, the state company "State Center for Political Education Schleswig-Holstein" was established, which until 2005 was under the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Culture of the State of Schleswig-Holstein. From 2005 to 2009 the State Center for Political Education was assigned to the State Chancellery . After the state elections in 2009, the state headquarters became part of the Ministry of Culture . At the beginning of 2011, the institution moved to the Schleswig-Holstein State Parliament and established a staff position with the State Parliament Director in the State Parliament administration . In 2015, the law establishing the office of a state commissioner for political education finally created the status of an independent commissioner. Schleswig-Holstein is the only federal state that has no state headquarters, but a state commissioner for political education.

management

The first state commissioner for civic education was Ernst Hessenauer from 1956 to 1984. He was followed by Wolfgang Hubrich from 1984 to 1989 as director of the state center for political education. From 1990 to 2002 Karl-Heinz Harbeck took on this task. From 2003 to 2008, Wolfgang Behrsing headed the regional headquarters. The office was provisionally assigned to Brigitte Hohmann from 2009 to 2010. From January 2011 to August 2013, Annette Wiese-Krukowska was in charge of the state center for political education in Schleswig-Holstein. In June 2014, Heiko Vosgerau became head of the facility. On November 20, 2015, the Schleswig-Holstein State Parliament elected Christian Meyer-Heidemann, a political scientist and didactic specialist, as the first state commissioner for civic education on the basis of a cross-party proposal. The election was preceded by an open expression of interest under the auspices of the Board of Trustees for Civic Education.

tasks

The state commissioner for political education advises the state government and the state parliament on fundamental issues of political education. The country representative and his team work independently and non-partisan.

The task of the state commissioner is to design and implement political education offers for the citizens of Schleswig-Holstein. Lectures, workshops, training courses, publications and other formats are offered for this purpose. With these possibilities, the free-democratic basic order is to be strengthened, political-historical knowledge is to be imparted and the democratic political culture in Schleswig-Holstein is to be revived.

The work is based on the Basic Law of the Federal Republic of Germany , the constitution of the State of Schleswig-Holstein and the Beutelsbach Consensus . This formulates three basic principles for every political-educational practice that is subject to a public mandate: The prohibition of overpowering, the consideration of controversial positions in political education and the ability of the addressees to analyze their own interests in political situations.

Events and projects

The topics of the projects and events of the State Commissioner for Political Education are devoted to regional and historical questions, but also deal with current political requirements and developments. Different formats and methods are used to enable an exchange between the participants.

Christian Meyer-Heidemann is the founder of the first-time voter project young & choosy. The State Commissioner for Political Education also organizes and supports other projects, especially in the youth sector: Youth Debate , Model United Nations (MUN-SH) and PartizipAction! and the #LaWa_SH initiative.

Board of Trustees of the State Commissioner for Political Education

The state commissioner for political education is supported in his work by a 14-member board of trustees.

The Board of Trustees consists of one member from each of the parties represented in the Schleswig-Holstein Landtag as well as one expert appointed by each of these parties or representatives of institutions or associations that deal with issues of political education. The party-affiliated state foundations of the parties represented in the state parliament, like the state student representatives, each appoint a joint representative. The members are appointed by the President of the Landtag for the duration of the electoral period of the Schleswig-Holstein Landtag.

Karsten Biermann, Director of the International Training Center Jugendhof Scheersberg eV, has been Chairman of the Board of Trustees since May 2019.

The tasks of the board of trustees result from § 6 PolBiLBeauftrG SH .

Publication offer

The range of publications offered by the State Commissioner ranges from questions of contemporary history to social aspects and current political issues - such as flight and migration or the future of Europe. It is mainly aimed at citizens of the state of Schleswig-Holstein. Most of the publications are available for a small fee, some are even free of charge.

In addition to offering publisher publications, the State Commissioner for Political Education also publishes its own publications. Among other things, the brochure “National Minorities and Ethnic Groups in Schleswig-Holstein” and the teaching materials on state politics “Democracy in Schleswig-Holstein” and local politics “Democracy right outside our door” can be ordered free of charge.