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Constituting America 2020 ReportPrepared for Our Donors

Poll after poll shows citizens know less and less about the U.S. Con-stitution and our country’s founding principles. This lack of knowl-edge is now manifesting itself in a rejection of our country’s history and founding principles. Constituting America is a unique part of the solution, by educating Americans about the Constitution, and the rights and liberties it provides and protects for all of us, meeting students where they are. Constituting America’s work thus has two major, interrelated dimensions – educational and cultural – both of which our pro-gramming aims to address. Our programs:• NEW Constitutional Chats LIVE Zoom Podcasts: Developed

within one week of the COVID-19 school closures in March2020, these live interactive educational Zooms (also distrib-uted as podcasts) are hosted by co-Presidents Janine Turnerand Cathy Gillespie, and National Youth Board members andGen-Z representatives Tova Love Kaplan and Dakare Chatman.Since March 2020, we have held over 50 ConstitutionalChats with a live audience of over 2,000, and thousandsmore have listened via podcast platforms!

• Constitution Day Celebration – Five hours of virtualvideo workshops: This exciting program included nineworkshops, each of which featured student winners ofour “We the Future” Contest, ranging from elementaryschool through college, educating their peers about theimportance of the Constitution and their winning works.Our program was virtually attended by over 1,000 students,teachers and parents with children with several teachersstreaming to their classrooms.

• George Washington Speaking Initiative: We are the onlyConstitution Education organization in the public, private/pa-

rochial, and homeschool classrooms almost weekly. Over half of our school presentations are in Title I schools. From 2018 to 2019, we almost doubled school presentations from 90 to 158! This year, despite school closures, we have already made 111 remote live on-demand and pre-scheduled pre-sentations to over 4,342 students, teachers, and adults!

• Civil Civic Conversation: “How to Have a Civil Civic Conver-sation” gives students the opportunity to learn how to havemeaningful, civil discussions. In America’s current divisive at-mosphere, it is important for students to learn to listen and become informed about opposing points of view. Through our Civil Civic process, students discover how to be an activepart of the political future of our country, exercising their FirstAmendment rights, protected by the U.S. Constitution.

• “We the Future” Contest: Constituting America’s “We theFuture” Contest offers students from elementary school tocollege the chance to earn scholarships for their creative workpertaining to the Constitution and its principles. Categories in-clude poetry, artwork, songs, STEM, entrepreneurship, essays,public service announcements, short films, and speeches. Wehave received entries from students in 49 states and haveawarded more than $210,000 in scholarship funding forthe national “We the Future” Contest winners.

• 90-Day Studies: Each year Constituting America offers an on-line 90-Day study on founding documents and topics. Topicsof our past studies have included the Federalist Papers, theConstitution, the Amendments, the classics that inspired theConstitution, the Executive Branch, the country’s past 57 presi-dential elections, the Supreme Court, the Congress, the states, and most recently: In the Course of Human Events – A 90Day Study of Major Dates in American History that Shaped The United States and Changed the World! These studies have resulted in 1,047 essays contributed by 175 constitu-tional scholars, historians, and elected officials. Our essayshave been shared over 130,000 times on social media. Our2021 Study will explore the Declaration of Independence!

Su m m a r y o f Su cce s s

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Co n s t i t u t i o na l C ha t s Zo o m Po d c a s t s

Within one week of the beginning of the COVID-19 school closures, Constituting America launched our free, public “Founding Document Forums & Constitutional Chats” Zoom podcasts. We have since held over 50 Live Constitutional Chats to over 2,000 student and adult attendees, with thousands more through podcast replays on iTunes, Spotify, YouTube, and other popular podcast platforms.

Key Results:99.5%

attendees who say they would like to participate

again!

98.3%“find this way of learning

about the Constitution fun and informative”

98.8%like having both students

and adults teach about the Constitution

92%report learning

something new aboutthe Constitution

Constitutional Chats Hosts

Janine Turner Tova Love Kaplan

Dakare Chatman Cathy Gillespie

Video samples (click thumbnail to watch):

Highlights from recent episode, “Breaking Down the Constitution: Article I

(w/ Dr. Colleen Sheehan)”

90-second compilation ofour Gen-Z student co-hosts’

amazing questions!

Constitutional Chats records 1-2 episodes per week in front of a live audience of parents, teachers, students, and interested citizens via Zoom Webinars.

Constitutional Chats is hosted by founder and co-president actress Janine Turner, co-president Cathy Gillespie, National Youth Board Director Tova Love Kaplan, and National Youth Board Student Ambassador Dakare Chatman. These Constitu-tional Chats cover a variety of topics, including our Founding Documents and their historical and modern applications and meanings, as well as current hot topics and debates playing out in our government and in the media. Each topic features a guest Constitutional expert; our previous guests have includ-ed professors, lawyers, journalists, members of Congress, and more!

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We have promoted our Constitutional Chats Zooms (and on-demand podcast episodes) extensively, through our con-stantly-growing social media network. We have one of the largest Facebook followings of any Constitution Education or-ganization, we have the largest number of YouTube subscrib-ers of any Constitution Education organization, and our Insta-gram following has grown by leaps and bounds from 1,200 at the beginning of March to over 5,500 to date! We are also one of the few Constitution Education organizations ac-tive on Snapchat, with over 3,100,000 impressions and over 38,000 swipe-ups to date!

Our previous episodes are available to watch or listen to on Libsyn, iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube. We also keep a full ar-chive of all the episodes and platform links on our website. We are meeting Gen Z and Millennials where they are – on their phones, listening to podcasts! Check out what they think on YouTube:

Quick video clip of social media ads

Co n s t i t u t i o na l C ha t s A d v e r t i s i n g & S o c i a l M e d i a

Must-Watch Snapchat & Instagram Promotional Ads (click thumbnail to watch)

Constitutional Chats Production & Promotion Team

Lisa Williams

Jacob VanDerwerken Emily VanDerwerken

Key Results:

3,100,000Snapchat impressions in the last six months

38,000Snapchat advertisement

swipe-ups

#1in YouTube subscribers

for Constitution Education Organizations

450%increase of

Instagram followers in last six months

84,000Facebookpage likes

2,300,000Facebook impressions

in last six months

900,000YouTube views in the last

six months

260,000Insatgram impresssions

in last six months

4,500,000Twitter impressions

in the last six months

15,000YouTube

subscribers

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Co n s t i t u t i o na l C ha t s To p i c s & G u e s t s

Our full Constitutional Chats Archive is available on our website, and features links to the various platforms to which we distribute our episodes. Below is a list of episodes and guests to date.

Episode Topic Guest Air Date

1 Coronavirus & the Constitution – The Federal and State Governments’ Roles

Professor Andrew Langer 3/31/20

2 The Constitution Protects Inventions – Morse & the Telegram Professor James Clinger 4/4/20

3 The Electoral College & Why It’s Still Relevant Professor Randy Barnett 4/7/20

4 America’s Promise & 1776 Unites Bob Woodson 4/16/20

5 Abraham Lincoln’s Address at Cooper Union James Best 4/18/20

6 COVID-19 & Religious Liberty, Elections, & Movement Professor Joerg Knipprath 4/21/20

7 Lincoln & the Emancipation Proclamation Scot Faulkner 4/25/20

8 Pandemic in American History - The Spanish Flu Dr. Jennifer Keene 4/28/20

9 Edison, Inventions, & Patent Law Dr. Paul Israel 5/2/20

10 COVID-19, Congress, & China Representative Adam Kinzinger, Senator Marsha Blackburn, & Peter Roff

5/5/20

11 Coronavirus & the Economy Rachel Greszler 5/9/20

12 The Senate & the 17th Amendment Professor William Morrisey 5/12/20

13 Censorship on Social Media Dr. Brad Smith 5/16/20

14 The Youth Vote & the 26th Amendment Dr. Robert McDonald 5/19/20

15 Women’s Right to Vote & the 19th Amendment Dr. Colleen Shogan 5/26/20

16 Space as Public & Private Enterprise Sean O’Keefe & Michael Gold 5/30/20

17 Freedom, Faction, & Fracture: Federalist Paper #10 (Breaking Down the Federalist Papers series)

Professor Adam Carrington 6/2/20

18 Difficulties of the Convention: Federalist Paper #37 (Breaking Down the Federalist Papers series)

Professor David Kopel 6/9/20

19 Expand Mail-In Voting? John Fund 6/13/20

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Episode Topic Guest Air Date20 Federal v. National Government: Federalist Paper #39

(Breaking Down the Federalist Papers series)Lucas Morel & Val Crofts 6/16/20

21 Juneteenth, Emancipation Proclamation, & the 13th Amendment

Horace Cooper 6/20/20

22 Checks, Balances, Separation of Powers: Federalist Paper #51 (Breaking Down the Federalist Papers series)

Dr. Bobbi Herzberg 6/23/20

23 Erasing History? Removing Historic Statues Professor Wilfred McClay & guest Eboni Jenerette

6/27/20

24 Declaration of Independence Tony Williams 6/30/20

25 Founders’ Warning about Long Laws: Federalist Paper #62 (Breaking Down the Federalist Papers series)

Professor Joe Knippenberg 7/7/20

26 Should TikTok Be Banned? Shane Tews 7/11/20

27 Women’s Suffrage & “Camilla Can Vote” Senator Marsha Blackburn & Mary Morgan Ketchel

7/14/20

28 COVID-19 & Education: How Will the Schools Open? Elizabeth Schultz 7/18/20

29 Hamilton on the Judiciary: Federalist Paper #78 (Breaking Down the Federalist Papers series)

Professor William Morrisey 7/21/20

30 Integrity of the Rule of Law: Federalist Paper #81 (Breaking Down the Federalist Papers series)

Judge Michael Warren 7/28/20

31 Are You Convinced Yet? Federalist Paper #85 (Breaking Down the Federalist Papers series)

Professor Adam Carrington 8/4/20

32 Breaking Down the Constitution: Article I (Breaking Down the Constitution series)

Dr. Colleen Sheehan 8/11/20

33 Should You & Your Family Be Able to Choose Your School? Micheal Flaherty 8/15/20

34 Breaking Down the Constitution: Article II pt. 1 (Breaking Down the Constitution series)

Professor William Morrisey 8/18/20

35 Breaking Down the Constitution: Article II pt. 2 (Breaking Down the Constitution series)

Professor William Morrisey 8/22/20

36 Breaking Down the Constitution: Article III (Breaking Down the Constitution series)

Professor Joerg Knipprath 8/25/20

37 Breaking Down the Constitution: Article IV & V (Breaking Down the Constitution series)

Tom Jipping 9/1/20

38 Breaking Down the Constitution: Article VI & VII (Breaking Down the Constitution series)

General Paul Clement 9/8/20

39 Breaking Down the Constitution: Preamble & Constitutional Convention (Breaking Down the Constitution series)

James D. Best 9/15/20

Co n s t i t u t i o na l C ha t s To p i c s & G u e s t s

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Co n s t i t u t i o n D ay Pr o g r a m & Wo r k sh o p s

We’re planning a full day of nine 25-minute workshops to celebrate the U.S. Constitution on September 17, 2020, with the goal of helping students learn how the Constitution applies to their individual strengths and interests! Constituting America’s co-Presidents Janine Turner and Cathy Gillespie will moderate each session with the students – peer-to-peer learning – each of which will feature our fabulous “We the Future” Contest winners.

Workshop Name Description

11:00 AM Live Reading of the Constitution

Janine Turner and Cathy and National Youth Board members Tova Love Kaplan and Dakare Chatman read the Constitution LIVE!

11:45 AM The Constitution & Crafts Workshop

Constituting America’s Elementary School Poetry and Artwork contest winners work with students to create artwork and poetry about the Constitution!

12:15 PM The Constitution & Cinema Workshop

Constituting America’s Middle School, High School, and College PSA and Short Film winners work with students to create storyboards and plan ideas to create their own PSAs and short films.

12:45 PM The Constitution & Science Workshop

Constituting America’s Middle School and High School STEM winners teach kids how to create a tem-plate for building an app or website.

1:15 PM The Constitution & Citizenship Workshop

Join us as former Turner Maurice Gauntt, Jr. Exemplary Citizenship Award winners talk about how to win the scholarship and the amazing opportunities it provides!

1:45 PM The Constitution & the First Amendment Workshop

Janine Turner teaches students how to write a petition and use their unalienable rights protected by the Constitution!

2:15 PM The Constitution & Communication Workshop

Constituting America’s Middle School, High School, and College Essay and Speech winners teach how to create an outline and plan out tips to deliver strong arguments in their own essays and speeches!

2:45 PM The Constitution & How to Have a Civil Civic Conversation Workshop

Constituting America’s contest winners teach how to have a Civil Civic Conversation in our divided country!

3:15 PM The Constitution & Concert Workshop

Constituting America’s Middle School and High School Song winners teach how to write lyrics and music!

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The George Washington Speaking Initiative brings an educational introduction to the Constitution and our country’s founding principles to students. These in-teractive, dynamic presentations teach students about the Constitution, how to use their First Amendment rights, and encourage students to use this newfound knowledge to be active citizens. Many schools teach their students how the gov-ernment works, but not about how they can get involved, or how the government is accountable to its constituents. Our government, after all, “derives their just powers from the consent of the governed.” Focusing on the tools in their toolbox (their First Amendment rights), which the non-partisan Constitution’s checks and balances protect, Constituting America teaches students how to find and contact their representatives, how to write a petition to address issues about which they are passionate, and consequently, they learn by application that the Constitution protects and empowers them in their everyday lives. One of Constituting America’s flagship programs, the George Washington Speak-ing Initiative brings an educational introduction to the Constitution into schools and civic organizations around the country. Demand for our school speaking pro-gram is at an all-time high, thanks to over 30 states that have passed new civics requirements for students. In response, we have expanded our school speaking team, now including Constituting America founder Janine Turner, co-chair Cathy Gillespie, and immediate past President of the National Council of Social Studies (and Texas Social Studies Teacher of the Year) Mr. Terry Cherry!

In 2019, we delivered 158 presentations to over 8,000 students, an increase from the 90 presentations we completed in 2018. Each one of these dynamic presentations teaches students about the Constitution, how to use their First Amendment rights, and being an active part of their government. In the 2019-2020 school year, Constituting America scheduled and completed 58 presentations, reaching over 1,600 students and 375 teachers in eight differ-ent school districts. Our teacher presentations have opened the door to many of our classroom presentations.

Constituting America’s George Washington Speaking Initiative Impact Map through September 2020.

G e o r g e Wa shi n g t o n Sp e a k i n g I n i t i a t i v e

Key Results:

88% teachers said students are now more prepared to be

active and engaged citizens

87%students reported an

increased understanding of the Constitution

42,000 student, teacher, &

adult attendees

633speeches delivered

129cities in

26 states reached

91%teachers are likely to

encourage fellow educators to invite us to their school

85%teachers find presentation engaging and informative

85%teachers are likely to use

Constituting America resources again in the future

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G e o r g e Wa shi n g t o n Sp e a k i n g I n i t i a t i v e Te a c h e r Te s t i m o ni a l s

“When COVID-19 moved my classes online, Constituting America didn’t miss a beat. They graciously met with each of my classes over a two-day period, accounting for my A/B block schedule. I am grateful my students were given this opportunity.”

– Angelina MartinHigh School Social Studies Teacher

“I enjoyed the questions Ms. Turner asked the participants, they were very thought-pro-voking and educating to students. The fact that this organization brings awareness to the Constitution and the civil liberties means they are educating a generation...and when you educate one generation you educate every generation the follows.”

– Nichole FrasureSocial Studies Teacher

“I’m very grateful for Constituting America staff for accepting to come virtually to my school at ILTexas - Orem. My students had a blast learning about the USA Constitution and the RAPPS. For the majority of my students, it was the first time they got exposed to these types of learning, and CA Staff did it so amazingly. My students witnessed testi-monies from previous contestants and created a petition to their congressperson. It was amazing. I highly recommend CA for every Social Studies classroom.”

– Jorge A. Rivera Ramos4th Grade Teacher

Teacher Video Testimonials (click thumbnail to watch):

Trish WatsonSpringwood Village Middle School

Sixth Grade Social Studies

Eboni Jenerette Twin Creeks Middle SchoolEighth Grade Social Studies

Michelle NeyreySpring ISD

Secondary Social Studies Specialist

“It was so great having you at our Professional Developments for the Social Studies teachers of International Leadership of Texas. All of the teachers enjoyed the infor-mation you shared from Constituting America. A great resource for teachers to share and use in their classrooms every day. Great contests to let our students shine in their knowledge of our country’s vital document. Fantastic tools and lessons to share.”

– Nancy Moore, M.Ed., International Leadership of Texas Area Social Studies Coach

Harris/Brazos County

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C i v i l C i v i c Co nv e r s a t i o n

Constituting America’s Civil Civic Conversation program provides students with the resources to synthesize information from our deeply divided nation’s biased news sources, glean pertinent and factual information, and discuss complicated and divisive issues with their peers and fellow citizens in a productive and civil manner.

During the program, students start by dividing into the two major sides of a current political issue and discussing their preconceived notions on the topic – and sometimes it gets heated!

Once this segment ends, the students watch our Civil Civic Conversation video (below), featuring former winners and National Youth Board members, who talk about tips on how to practice constructive listening and discussion of differences.

Our Winners on How to Have a Civil Civic Conversation

Instructional video for curriculum (click thumbnail to watch)

Next, the students are given an article explaining the viewpoint of the opposite side of the issue, which they read and highlight at least three interesting or new facts that the other side’s argument presents.

Last, both sides come together and create mock legislation that addresses the needs of both viewpoints – solidifying the message for students that the best way to solve our country’s crises is through unity and cooperation.

Rave Tweets from Teachers!

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We t h e Fu t u r e Co n t e s t

Our “We The Future” Contest provides creative outlets for students of all ages, ele-mentary school through college, to use their passion – whether it is writing, drawing, music and songwriting, producing films, or STEM – to express themselves about the U.S. Constitution. Our contest prompts push students to think about the Constitution as it relates to their own individual lives, and how the protections and framework set forth by the Constitution are a vital part of every American’s day-to-day life. Creating contest entries provides students engaging “at-home” learning opportunities.

Students win scholarship prizes, national exposure, and an all-expenses-paid Men-tor Trip! In 2019, contest winners took a group trip to Washington, D.C., where they went on exclusive tours of the White House and State Department, performed their winning works at the Department of Education’s Constitution Day Celebration, and even had a private question-and-answer session with the Chief Justice of the Su-preme Court, Justice John Roberts! Previous Mentor Trip destinations have included Hollywood, Nashville, New York and Philadelphia, to meet with Mentors including include John Rich, Vince Gill, Grammy-winning singer/songwriter Lari White, Fox’s Bret Baier and Brit Hume, film and television star Gary Sinise, film producers Johna-than and Deborah Flora and Michael Flaherty, and the Motion Picture Association of America’s Gail MacKinnon.

We have received entries from students in 49 states and have awarded more than $210,000 in scholarship funding for the national “We the Future” Contest winners. Our winners’ works are then promoted and given national exposure. Our most re-cent song, “These Precious Words,” that we are promoting for Constitution Day, has already hit Play MPE’s top 20 most streamed songs!

In addition to the student categories, we annually award Best Constitution Lesson Plan to a teacher. Getting teachers involved with providing improved civic learning to our country’s youth is a critical piece of Constituting America’s mission.

Some of our most impactful entries and winners stick with Constituting America for years after their first contest entry. They serve on our National Youth Advisory Board, cohost our Constitutional Chats podcast, work on our advertising team, provide tips to prospective contest entrants, and so much more.

Key Results:

60Kshort film viewers

via 59 film festivals

145Msong impressions

via 81 radio stations

12.2Mviewers on

social media

15.6M households

via 275 television stations

$210,000scholarships awarded

to contest winners

Winning “We the Future” Contest Entry Samples (click thumbnail to watch):

“It’s an American Thing!”Best Middle School PSA

Dakare Chatman

“Everything”Best High School PSA

Emily Kitzmiller VanDerwerken

“If You Had Something Powerful”Best High School PSA

Laura Leigh Hicks

Constituting America’s 2019 “We the Future” Contest winners in Washington, D.C. in September 2019.

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9 0 - D ay St u d i e s

2020 EssayistsJames D. Best

James C. ClingerDaniel A. Cotter

Val CroftsDanny de Gracia

Scot FaulknerDavid F. ForteNoah Griffin

John Steele GordonDavid Head

Amanda HughesJames S. Humphreys

Paul IsraelJoerg KnipprathDavid B. KopelAndrew Langer

“ In the Course of Human Events – Major Dates in American History that Shaped The United States and Changed the World” sample essays

Recovering Our Legacy: The Many Uses of the

American Pastby Wilfred McClay

July 4, 1776: Congress Adopts the Declaration of

Independenceby Joerg Knipprath

Wilfred McClayJeanne McKinney

Dan MorenoffWilliam MorriseyBrian Pawlowski

Gary PorterHon. Don Ritter

Hon. David L. RobbinsJoshua Schmid

Kyle A. ScottDavid Shestokas

Craig Bruce SmithJeff Truitt

Hon. Michael WarrenTony Williams

Robert L. Woodson, Sr.

August 18, 1920: 19th Amendment Ratified,

Women Gain Right to Voteby The Honorable Michael Warren

April 8, 1913: 17th Amend-ment Ratified, Allowing

Direct Election of Senatorsby Kyle A. Scott

American Republicanism as a

Way of Lifeby William Morrisey

Apple of Gold: The Decla-ration of Independence &

American Principlesby Tony Williams

In February 2020, we launched our 10th annual 90-Day Study, “In the Course of Human Events — Major Dates in American History that Shaped the United States and Changed the World.” This study fo-cused on dates and events that influenced American government, policy, and day-to-day life. We published 109 essays from 32 nation-ally-known Constitutional scholars, historians, and elected officials! Since 2010, we have published over 1,100 essays by over 175 schol-ars. This resource is archived and searchable on our website, from which it has been shared over 150,000 times on social media!

Our previous 90-Day Study topics have been:• 2019: State and Local Government• 2018: The Congress• 2017: U. S. Supreme Court Decisions & Justices• 2016: Presidential Elections & Their Constitutional Impact• 2015: Constitutional Crisis — Executive Overreach• 2014: The Classics that Inspired the Constitution• 2013: The Amendments• 2012: The Constitution• 2011: The Federalist Papers