Virginia Capitol Connections Winter 2019

The Importance of Civic Education By Delegate Schuyler VanValkenburg

George Mason opposed the ratification of the Constitution, saying it would destroy the rights of Virginia citizens. He led by example, though; so, when the document was ratified after days of hot argument, he worked with his friend James Madison to propose a bill of rights to the new federal congress, rather than stalking off the field in partisan anger. How did they achieve this feat? Through the power of mutual discussion and deliberation, a shared idea of citizenship.

in the Civil Rights Movement to the women who fought in court to gain admission to the University of Virginia, our citizens have showed the nation how to engage in advocacy and dialogue for political change and live up to our political values. But Virginia isn’t doing enough today to prepare its citizens to inherit and continue that legacy of leadership. Though we require 8th and 12th grade civics classes, these requirements are neither well developed nor do they require Virginians to take their education off the page and into civic society. There are many ways to deepen this education and show Virginians how to become part of the deliberation our system prizes. Schools could ask seniors to participate in a campaign or interest group of their choice before graduation—after all, Virginia has a campaign every year, unlike most states. Or students could visit with their Delegate or Senator when the Assembly is out of session. We can have students visit their local officials at work, like Henrico’s Citizens Academy program, which teaches people about the policies and practices of county government so they can be better advocated. We often fail to see that workforce education and preparing people to be democratic citizens can go hand in hand! There are plenty of programs in Virginia, like the We The People program, which puts students face-to-face with adults to talk through hard policy and constitutional values questions, or the Virginia History Day program, which encourages a deep investigation of our state’s past. Groups like the Virginia Bar Association, the John Marshall Foundation, and Virginia Civics are ready to partner with the state if it asks them. Virginia’s pioneering Portrait of a Graduate goal already includes citizenship standards, but the portrait is only a rough outline. To that end, we can and should revise our Portrait of a Graduate to include specific goals, like helping graduating seniors with voter registration. As a state, we must lead the nation not only in job development, but also in the development of active, engaged citizens who can keep our nation’s ideals thriving. It’s a Virginian tradition worth maintaining in today’s world. Delegate Schuyler VanValkenburg is a Democrat representing the 72nd District, which is part of Henrico County. He teaches government to seniors at Glen Allen High School in Henrico County.

Virginians played a crucial role in building a deliberative model of citizenship that the early republic, which Americans—learning how to be citizens rather than subjects—could use. James Madison fought tooth and nail in Congress for a Bill of Rights he hadn’t supported at first, which he had called a mere “parchment barrier.” He did so because he knew his fellow citizens demanded it. He had been moved by their demands in the ratification processes and made promises to them during that deliberation. For weeks in Congress, he fought against people who wanted to move onto other practical priorities—ships, ports, hiring tax inspectors—because he believed in the primacy of the outcome of that public debate over private concerns. Another Virginian, John Marshall, when he took on the mantle of Chief Justice, inherited a destabilized and purposeless institution. Chief Justices had been a revolving door, and through the early 1790s the Justices rarely met to discuss their cases. However, Marshall knew that the Court could help to channel the issues of the nation through its Constitutional deliberation, as an equal partner to the other two branches in the process of governing. George Washington, a third Virginian to build this civic character, understood the need for deliberation in advising the nation’s highest office. He deliberately appointed people who disagreed with one another and represented different streams of thought about the new Republic’s future so he could benefit from their dialogue. Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton fought tooth and nail in his drawing room, and the nation’s policies came out stronger for it. The role of Virginians in modeling citizenship for the nation didn’t stop in the 1700s, though—from Oliver Hill’s leadership

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WCVE (Richmond, Charlottesville)—Sunday 9 a.m. WBRA (Roanoke, Lynchburg)—Sunday 10 a.m. WVPT (Harrisonburg)—Tuesday 5 p.m.

WHRO -World (Norfolk)—Tuesday 5 p.m. • Thursday 5:30 p.m. ARC TV (Southwest Virginia)—Wednesday 1:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m. Norfolk’s Neighborhood Network, TV-48 —Sunday through Thursday 5 a.m. & 8:30 p.m. Thursday & Friday at 10 p.m. • Saturday at 5 p.m. Suffolk Network, TV-190 —8:30 a.m. & 5:00 p.m. daily Weekly show information is on Facebook— THIS WEEK IN RICHMOND Past shows may be found on YouTube. For more information: http://ideastations.org/tags/week-richmond

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V irginia C apitol C onnections , W inter 2019

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