Tahoma High School’s We the People team of constitutional masterminds have won the state championship for the sixth time in a row, its 19th state win overall.
In April, the team of 26 seniors will head to Washington, D.C. for the national competition.
But the road to get there will not be an easy one. Gretchen Wulfing, the students’ teacher and eight-year coach for We the People, told the students last week that if they want to get into the top three at nationals, it’s going to require a lot of work.
Sydney Murrey is up for the challenge. She comes from a family that isn’t strangers to the We the People team, or “Weoples” as they like to call themselves. Her two older siblings competed on the team as seniors and both went on to compete at Nationals.
Murrey said she’s excited for the chance to go to nation’s capital and is willing to put in the work that is looming over her and her teammates.
“We’ve worked this hard since July; I’m ready to push hard through the end,” she said in an interview.
Her teammates agree.
Megan Simmons, who is in the group that studies philosophical ideas surrounding the Constitution, said the hard work isn’t really work anymore.
“It’s a lifestyle at this point,” she said, laughing.
Her new “lifestyle” has had its influence on her other studies at Tahoma. It has not only helped her with her writing class, it also carries over into her every day life.
“This (class) has revolutionized dinner conversation at my house,” she said.
Sometimes, she said, she gets so animated and passionate that her mother has to bring her back to normal talking speed using an unconventional but good-natured method.
“If my mom finds me talking too fast, she squirts me with a water bottle… in the face,” Simmons said, laughing. “She carries it with her now, because apparently it’s an issue.”
If you think this kind of passion and interest in the Constitution among high school students is an anomaly, you wouldn’t be too far off.
Renee Hancock, another Weoples team member this year, said she is concerned about how little knowledge high school students have regarding the Constitution and current events.
In 2011, the New York Times reported that fewer than half of eighth graders in the U.S. “knew the purpose of the Bill of Rights.” That statistic was found through the National Assessment of Education Progress test taken by fourth, eighth and 12th grade students in 2010.
Last week, however, Arizona became the first state to approve a new law requiring high school students to pass a civics citizenship test, the same test that new U.S. citizens must pass.
After a search in Washington’s bill database, it appears there has not been a similar piece of legislation introduced this session so far.
Hancock said the knowledge she has gained in the class has not only translated well into her other classes, but also into her admissions interviews for college.
During her interviews she was asked to explain what she thinks the biggest current issue is in the U.S. She said she had a plethora of ideas to talk about at length.
When she tells them about this class, the admissions officers are stunned, Hancock said.
“I think it’s kind of impressive that I’m using all this free time to debate the Constitution,” she said. “Nerdy, but impressive.”
Tahoma’s Weoples team will travel to Washington, D.C. in April for the National competition. During the next few months they will not only be studying hard, but also holding fundraisers to help finance their trip.
People interested in donating to their trip can send checks addressed to Tahoma We the People to:
Tahoma We the People
PO Box 116
Maple Valley, WA 98038
