The Williston Northampton School students have secured the right to represent Massachusetts in the National We The People Competition after placing first in the state on Saturday, January 30, 2016. The 30 students involved are led by Mr. Peter Gunn as a part of their A.P. Government class.

The We The People State competition was held in Boston at the Ted Kennedy Museum of UMass Boston. Williston came in first of the six schools competing, with Easthampton High School following in second place.

The We the People program involves a mix of prepared presentations and follow-up questions on issues regarding the Constitution and its impact on modern society. Each school divides into six units with roughly five students within each one. Each unit is responsible for three questions ranging from the importance of the Articles of the Confederation to the application of the death penalty. They have four minutes to read a prepared presentation before answering an additional six minutes of questions from the panel of judges.

Regarding the We The People program, Mr. Gunn says, “I’ve learned more about teamwork and what it takes for a group to collaborate successfully [as a part of We The People] than in virtually any other team experience that I’ve had … students do remarkably amazing things- and on their own- when you give them the space and support.”

This is the third time Williston has earned the right to represent Massachusetts at the National Competition. Williston went for the first time in 2001 and again in 2013. Mr. Gunn says he would love to, “raise the bar on other Williston teams… to get in the top 20.”

The A.P. Government classes worked to prepare questions for the state finals since the beginning of Trimester Two. Multiple faculty members and parents lent their expertise to the students and sat in classes as mock judges during rehearsals.

“There were about a half dozen moments during the course of the morning and again in the afternoon where I saw a student taking risks and gaining in self-confidence- doing more than they had done before in rehearsals, or answering a question really well or collaborating with a teammate really well. In those moments I thought ‘This is why this is cool to do’… to witness a young student have that moment, and realize it too, that’s the whole thing for me,” says Mr. Gunn.

Emma Reynolds ’17, a student participating in the program, explained, “Doing We the People allows us [students] to step outside our comfort zones… after our first [hearing] I remember thinking how glad I was to have taken A.P. Government and, even if we didn’t win, how much I loved doing it.”

Reynolds continues, “A.P. Government is my favorite class I have every taken regardless of the time commitment… you see the direct results of your effort beyond just what the gradebook says.”

In addition to coming in first place, Williston made history at the State competition as the first school to reach 1,000 points in a single session. A perfect score is 1,080.

The National Competition will take place in late April in hearing rooms at the University of Maryland and on Capitol Hill.