HPU College of Communication professor John Hart was been invited to judge the 22nd annual We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution National Finals in Washington, D.C on April 24-27. Hart will join Supreme Court Justices from Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, and Oregon in judging the event.
One school represents each state based on the results of a state chamionship. Hawai‘i will be represented by Kahuku High School. National finals are traditionally held in U.S. Congressional Hearing rooms.
The primary goal of the Center for Civic Education’s We the People program is to promote civic competence and responsibility among the nation’s elementary and secondary students. The culminating activity is a simulated congressional hearing in which students “testify” before a panel of judges. Students demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of constitutional principles and have opportunities to evaluate, take, and defend positions on relevant historical and contemporary issues.
Hart is the former vice president of the Missouri Center for Civic Education Program. He has been invited to testify to the United States Senate and the National Parks Service regarding the public policy issues of the naming of national monuments. A former debate coach, Hart still serves as a media critic for political campaigns and debates.