Each year on Sept. 17, Americans celebrate Constitution Day as a way to recognize the adoption of the United States Constitution and those who have become U.S. citizens. Why September 17? On this day in 1787, delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the document in Philadelphia.
At GPS, students and faculty celebrated during IMPACT period, gathering in Frierson Theatre for a lesson about the U.S. Constitution and government.
Kicking off the program, reenacting Cabinet Battle #1 from Hamilton: An American Musical, were Dr. Steve Harrison as Alexander Hamilton, Mrs. Callie Hamilton as Thomas Jefferson, Mrs. Debbie Glasscock as James Madison, and Ms. Mary Baxter as President George Washington.
Afterward, Harrison and Hamilton debriefed the scene with a discussion of positive and negative liberty and implied versus expressed powers followed by a Schoolhouse Rock video: The Preamble.
Senior Larkin Brown provided some lighthearted moments with a short joke-filled intermission. “Was General Washington handsome? Yes. Georgeous!”
Sophomores Addie Youmans and Isabel Milan, members of Junior State of America club, then hosted a hot battle between two talented teams of classmates (creatively dubbed Team One and Team Two) to see who could outwit the other with their knowledge of American government and its Constitution, Bill of Rights, Amendments, and more.
After a close contest, with the score mostly tied throughout, finally Team Two edged out Team One with a score of 22 versus 19.
The assembly concluded with a second Schoolhouse Rock video, I'm Just a Bill.
Dr. Harrison and Mrs. Callie Hamilton explain positive and negative liberty and implied versus expressed powers