[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 2]
[Senate]
[Page 1897]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[[Page 1897]]

  SPARKMAN HIGH SCHOOL PARTICIPATION IN THE ``WE THE PEOPLE . . . THE 
                 CITIZEN AND THE CONSTITUTION'' PROGRAM

 Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, on May 6-8, 2000 more than 1200 
students from across the United States will be in Washington, D.C. to 
compete in the national finals of the ``We the People . . . The Citizen 
and the Constitution'' program. I am proud to announce that a class 
from Sparkman High School from the city of Harvest will represent my 
home state of Alabama in this national event. These young scholars have 
worked diligently to reach the national finals and through their 
experience have gained a deep knowledge and understanding of the 
fundamental principles and values of our constitutional democracy.
  The ``We the People . . . The Citizen and the Constitution'' program 
is the most extensive educational program in the country developed 
specifically to educate young people about the Constitution and the 
Bill of Rights. The three-day national competition is modeled after 
hearings in the United States Congress. These hearings consist of oral 
presentations by high school students before a panel of adult judges. 
The students testify as constitutional experts before a congressional 
committee, that is, the panel of judges representing various regions of 
the country and a variety of appropriate professional fields. The 
student testimony is followed by a period of questioning during which 
the judges probe students for their depth of understanding and ability 
to apply their constitutional knowledge. Columnist David Broder 
described the national finals as ``the place to have your faith in the 
younger generation restored.''
  The student team from Sparkman High School is currently conducting 
research and preparing for the upcoming national competition in 
Washington, D.C. I am extremely proud of the students and teacher and 
wish them the best of luck at ``We the People'' national finals. I look 
forward to greeting them when they visit Capitol Hill.

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