We The People Team Makes It 11

by Alan Pollock

            CHATHAM — They’ll be hoisting a new banner on the gymnasium wall at Chatham High School, thanks to this year’s We The People team, which scored the school’s 11^th state championship over the weekend.  With 10 previous victories, there’s just no more room on the old banner. 

            “That’s pretty impressive for a little school on Cape Cod,” Principal Paul Mangelinkx said.  This is the school’s seventh straight title, and the 11^th in the 14-year history of program, which tests’ students knowledge of the U.S. Constitution.   

Beltway bound…The We The People team from Chatham High School earned the school’s 11th state championship Saturday, and will head to the national competition in Washington, D.C. in May.  ALAN POLLOCK PHOTO

           The 17 seniors spent months studying the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, scrutinizing their history and their relevance to current events.  The work was grueling, and teacher Thomas Flaherty carried through on his promise to be his students’ toughest critic.

            “He was ruthless,” one student said.  Students worked long hours to learn the Constitution, but not the way they learned lessons in other history classes, Jesse Hoffman-Klaucke said.  Every member of the six unit teams had to fully understand the underpinnings of democracy, using critical thinking skills to demonstrate that knowledge to the judges.

            Practicing among themselves and before a group of local volunteer judges, the team members learned to hone their presentation skills.  In the end, it was this professional presentation that appeared to impress the judges at the state competition, Flaherty said.  The teams of students are grilled in a session that simulates a Congressional hearing, before a distinguished panel of volunteer judges.

            Six schools signed up to attend the state competition, but two dropped out.  The remaining schools included one or two with veteran We The People programs, which gave Chatham a run for its money.  Flaherty admits that, even a week and a half ago, he had some concerns about the team.  But in the home stretch, the students came through and showed their stuff, he said.

            Now, the team will begin preparing for the national competition, to be held in Washington, D.C. May 2 to 6, where they will stand toe-to-toe with the best We The People teams from around the nation.  While they’re excited about the competition, the students say they’re realistic about their chances.  Chatham’s team has never taken the national championship. 

            In addition to another banner on the gym wall, the students say they’ve earned something more important from the We The People competition: they’ve become better informed citizens.  Audrey Hart said before taking Flaherty’s class, she had heard about the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, “but I didn’t know the specifics on it.”  In the context of the War on Terror, Guantanamo brings the writ of habeas corpus out of the textbooks and into students’ minds, Hart said.

            There is no shortage of current events that demonstrate Constitutional issues, from the Patriot Act to the Jena Six.  Student Sam Watson said he used to think he knew what the Roe V. Wade Supreme Court decision was all about.

            “It’s not just about abortion, it’s about a person’s right to privacy,” he said.

            Studies show that students who participate in civic education programs like We The People tend to be more faithful voters than their peers.  But it’s not just that they’ll be casting ballots, student Malcolm Fano said.  They’ll be more analytical in their political views.  Fano said that, before taking this class, he probably would’ve just followed his parents’ lead when voting on Super Tuesday.  But now he’s got a good grasp of some of the key issues in the campaign, and is better able to choose for himself.

            Flaherty said he will retire from teaching next year, so this is the second to the last We The People team he’ll coach. 

            “I’ve gotta go for the 12,” he said.

            After that, students say they hope the school remains committed to We The People.  With strict curriculum guidelines from state government and the No Child Left Behind Act, there is a danger that civic education will be dropped, as it has from many other school districts, the students say.

            “Civic education, that’s what’s really dying,” Hart said. 

            But for now, the team is focused on the national competition.  As always, the students will be looking to the community to support their trip to Washington.

            “This isn’t funded by the school,” Flaherty said.  The race is on to raise the expected $20,000 for the trip, and donors can send contributions to Chatham High School, 425 Crowell Rd. Chatham, MA 02633, payable to We The People. 

            The members of this year’s We The People team are Sam Watson, Farrell Helbling, Malcolm Fano, Stephanie Clark, Billy Watts, Nick Lapham, Nicole Jacinto, Maggie Cole, Katrina Thistle, Audrey Hart, Libby Buck, Rebecca Hutching, Jesse Hoffman-Klaucke, Michelle Spencer, Rachel Cook, Kenny Davol and Taylor Amara.

1/31/08