Following a successful run at the regional and state level, Cody High School students will be heading to the We The People National Finals in Washington, D.C., where they will show off their constitutional knowledge. 

This is a first for Cody High School’s We The People program, where students gain civic and constitutional knowledge before competing in a mock congressional hearing.

“It’s more than just memorizing answers to the citizenship test or something like that, they really have to be able to reason and explain these questions,” said Karen Wagner, a Cody High School social studies teacher.

The program is a good opportunity for students to understand the United State’s system of government as they transition into young adulthood, Wagner said, adding that she thinks what Cody students learn during We The People will stick with them long term. 

Cody High School student Jazmin Boswell was not interested in civic duties a year ago, she told the Tribune via email, but following We The People she has gained useful knowledge and become a more involved citizen.

“We The People has broadened my horizons in many ways, not only is this the smartest I have ever felt but I also am able to rattle off the Bill of Rights, cite the necessary and Proper Clause, Commerce Clause, and recite SCOTUS cases,” Boswell said. “But most importantly I possess the ability to question politics in today’s world.”

She voted in the 2024 election and attended a meeting regarding Wyoming’s education bills, she said, adding that all high school students should have access to We The People.

“It opened my eyes to the importance of being involved in politics, [understanding] our rights as citizens and fulfilling my civic duties,” she said.

Competing and succeeding

Cody’s We The People competitors impressed judges at the state competition in December. Some of them are even Wyoming Supreme Court judges, Wagner said.

“When you have those people giving you feedback, saying, ‘You 18-year-olds understand the Constitution better than a lot of people who have gone to law school,’ I think that’s so rewarding for kids to hear that feedback,” Wagner said. 

Based on a local Cody competition, six winning teams are chosen to compete at state in Cheyenne where they compete in the Capitol to be one of the top six schools in the finals. From Cody High School, 30 students traveled to Cheyenne out of the 140 who competed in the local competition. Out of Cody’s state competitors, all but one will be going to the national competition in Washington, D.C.

Cody High School actually finished second at state but were able to fit in an open slot in what’s referred to as “a wild card spot.” 

This isn’t uncommon in Wyoming due to the state’s well funded We The People program, as most years the state is able to send the runner up team as a wild card.

The goal is to have 48 to 51 schools compete nationally, about one team per state, Wagner explained, but some years schools or states can’t send a group. 

Putting in the classwork

In Cody, We The People is a graduation requirement. The program, which is run by the Center for Civic Education, “is the most extensive civic education program nationwide,” Wagner said. 

Its goal is to teach students about the Constitution and its principles and values, an understanding of their rights and responsibilities as citizens based on current events and Supreme Court cases.

Every senior in the school’s American government class has to participate in We The People to some degree; this includes a local competition in November that enlists the services of various community members as judges who come in to question the students on their civic knowledge during the mock congressional hearing. Past judges have included Rep. Rachel Rodriguez-Williams (R-Cody), as well as other representatives and past mayors, said John Corbin, Wyoming’s 2024 teacher of the year and a social studies teacher at Cody High School. 

Students have worked hard in class as they learned about government while also preparing three prepared statements for their mock congressional hearing, he added.

The concepts of We The People are also taken and utilized in other social studies classes. For example, social studies students carry out a congressional hearing in a couple of their classes to prepare them for We The People their senior year.

“So it’s been really kind of a formative process for them to understand how to research a problem, how to collaborate on something like this and do a really good job,”Corbin said. 

Corbin is a member of the Wyoming Future of Learning Advisory Committee, which has been looking into Wyoming’s Profile of a Graduate, he said. We The People project covers 27 out of the 37 pieces of the Profile of a Graduate, “so all of their hard work really culminates in a college career and military ready student that we can be really proud to send to our community.”

Going to D.C.

Cody High School student Jarrett Christler is excited for the trip but nervous for the more difficult questions they’re preparing for, he said via email Tuesday.

“Some of the most memorable moments from my senior year have come from my We The People experience — whether it was the excitement of learning that we had advanced to the second day of the state competition or simply spending time with teammates who share my passion for these topics,” Christler said. “I’m incredibly excited about the trip to Washington, D.C., because I know it will be an enriching experience filled with learning opportunities.”

When the students are not presenting at the finals, they will be exploring D.C. and going to the various monuments and Smithsonian Museums.

“This is going to be kind of really an amazing senior trip for these guys, and they’ve earned it and they’ve been working really hard,” Corbin said.

Cody High School’s social studies department is currently fundraising for the trip; those who would like to donate can contact 307-587-4251, johncorbin@park6.org or karenwagner@park6.org. For more information on the students or their upcoming fundraising efforts, visit Cody We The People Team on Facebook.