Important UpdateDue to the major health risks created by the coronavirus, it is with deep disappointment that the Center for Civic Education has decided to cancel the in-person portions of the 2020 We the People National Finals and the National Invitational. We are working on an alternative plan that will involve video hearings that are evaluated and scored by our expert judges. We will provide more information in the coming days and weeks. Read our full statement here.  Welcome to the 33rd Annual We the People National Finals.The staff of the Center for Civic Education appreciates your hard work and dedication to teaching about government and the Constitution and Bill of Rights. Because of your participation in the We the People Program, your students have the opportunity to study and learn about government and constitutional principles and ideas in prepartation for participating in the National Finals. Through this experience your students acquire the civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions neccessary to effectively participate in our constitutional democratic republic. 
Teachers' FAQ Who handles the students' travel? WorldStrides handles the students' travel to the national finals. When will the competition scores be available? Hearing Rooms Saturday, Sunday and Monday All three days of the hearings take place in the North Building of the National Conference Center. Every effort is made to ensure that parents and visitors who have come to see a particular student testify is seated in the room during that student’s unit hearing. Parents and visitors may also stand in the back of the room unless otherwise directed due to fire codes and at the discretion of the teacher, floor supervisor, or Center staff. To ensure that the hearings are not interrupted, parents and visitors are admitted to the hearing room at appropriate break times (between units) and after the judges have left the room. Everyone is welcome to observe the hearings. However to ensure fairness, anyone affiliated with a competing class (teachers, coaches, students, chaperons, parents, friends, relatives, etc.) may not enter the hearing room of any other competing class. Once class hearings are completed floor supervisors help facilitate their exit from the North building in a timely fashion. Student Orientation Room
The Student Orientations are held in the Loudoun room at the National Conference Center on the Saturday and Sunday a half hour before the hearings begin. Robert Leming, Director of the We the People Programs and Mark Molli, Associate Director of the Center for Civic Education officially welcome students, teachers, parents, and visitors and address the audience about important matters concerning the competition. Upon arrival Center and WorldStrides staff direct students to the Student Orientation room. At the end of the briefing, WorldStrides and Center staff direct classes to their hearing rooms. Parents and visitors are welcome to attend the student orientation and are dismissed after students. Awards Ceremony The Awards Ceremony takes place Monday night, April 27, 2020 starting at 7:30 p.m. in the Ballroom of the National Conference Center. The ceremony is the culminating event of the 33rd Annual We the People National Finals - a time to celebrate the accomplishments of all of the students and teachers participating in the National Finals. Approximately 2,000 students, teachers, parents, judges, volunteers, Center for Civic Education staff, and special guests are in attendance. Recognition awards are given to participating teachers. In addition, twenty-four class awards are given, including six unit awards, a special unit award, five regional awards, and twelfth- through first-place awards. |
