[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 6] [Senate] [Page 8221] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]RECOGNITION OF THE WASHINGTON STATE CHAMPIONS OF THE ``WE THE PEOPLE . . . THE CITIZENS AND THE CONSTITUTION'' COMPETITION Mr. GORTON. Mr. President, this week's Innovation in Education Award recipient is an award winning class from Tahoma High School in Maple Valley, Washington. Earlier this year 29 exceptional students from Tahoma High School in Washington state won Washington state's competition testing their knowledge of the Constitution. As a result of that victory, this past weekend they were in Washington, D.C. to participate in the national finals of the ``We the People . . . The Citizen and the Constitution'' program. The ``We the People . . . The Citizens and the Constitution'' program, administered by the Center for Civic Education, provides our elementary and secondary students a strong foundation in the history and philosophical underpinnings of the Constitution. That foundation ultimately promotes a sense of civic responsibility in these students and provides them with the means to act effectively within a democratic society. The final activity in this program, which took place April 30-May 3, 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. I am happy to announce that I attended last night's award ceremony which the Tahoma High team won a regional award. I am proud of the achievement of these students and am happy to recognize them. They are Adam Baldridge, Mary Basinger, Josh Bodily, Sydney Brumbach, Katie Carder, Erica Chavez, Elizabeth Dauenhauer, Steven Dekoker, Meaghan Denney, Nathan Dill, Marisa Dorazio, Jesse Duncan, Jayson Hart, Jon Hallstrom, Carolyn Hott, Daniel Linder, Casey Lineberger, Clark Lundberg, Karrie Pilgrim, Michael Pirog, David Rosales, Jason Shinn, Jeremy Sloan, Justin Sly, Donny Trieu, Orianna Tucker, Jessica Walker, Raymond Williams, and Elizabeth Zaleski. I also recognize Kathy Hand, the Washington state coordinator for the ``We the People . . .'' program, and Kristy Ulrich, the district coordinator. Finally, I applaud Mark Oglesby and his assistant Stephanie Galloway, the teachers who have led their Tahoma High School class to this national competition, and have taught the past four state championship classes from Washington state. That track record shows great leadership and dedication to the education of their students. I enjoyed meeting with the students this weekend and wish them the best for their future. They will certainly be well prepared for it. ____________________