[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 9709]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



              REGARDING THE IMPORTANCE OF OUR CONSTITUTION

 Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, I want to take a moment to recognize 
some special students from my home state of Wyoming, Green River to be 
specific, who have been spending a lot of their time studying our 
Constitution. They got so good at it, in fact, that they entered a 
national competition here in Washington to test their knowledge against 
the best of their peers and had a remarkable result.
  Earlier this month students from around the country came to the 
nation's capital to compete on their understanding of our Constitution 
and our American Government. The students of Green River High School 
did very well in that event. In fact, their understanding and grasp of 
the fundamental principles of our Democracy and the meaning of our 
Constitution was judged to be among the best of the 50 teams that 
participated.
  Programs like the one the students of Green River participated in are 
vital if we are to ensure that our future leaders have an understanding 
of the principles of our Constitution and the beliefs and values our 
Founding Fathers brought to the creation of our government. Such an 
understanding is an important part of our children's education for it 
will help them understand that the rights and freedoms afforded by our 
Constitution bring with them certain duties and responsibilities - the 
duties and responsibilities of citizenship. That will help them 
understand their role as they become our local, state and national 
leaders and face the challenges of the new millennium.
  Good work, Green River High School! Led by their teacher, Dennis 
Johnson, and supported by their State Coordinator, Dick Kean, and their 
District Coordinator, Matt Strannigan, they did a great job and made 
Wyoming proud.
  I would also like to congratulate each member of the team, which 
includes: Richard Baxter, Natalie Binder, Katharine Bracken, Cameron 
Kelsey, Sandra Newton, Jacque Owen, Jeremy Pitts, Benjamin Potmesil,
Meagan Reese, Rachel Ryckman, Ryan Stewart and Steven Ujvary.

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