Welcome to The Dirksen Congressional Center's Communicator - a web-based e-newsletter providing educators with news and ideas to enhance civic education and improve the understanding of Congress - http://www.webcommunicator.org/.

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NEWS FROM THE DIRKSEN CENTER
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Congressional Research Awards Announcement

DEADLINE -- February 1, 2002

The Dirksen Congressional Center invites applications for grants totaling $50,000 in 2002 to fund research on congressional leadership and the U.S. Congress. Political scientists, historians, biographers, scholars of public administration or American studies, and journalists are among those eligible. The Center also awards a significant portion of the funds for dissertation research. Undergraduate or pre-Ph.D. study, research teams of two or more individuals, organizations, and institutions are not eligible.

Applications are accepted at any time. The deadline is February 1, 2002. The grant selections will be announced in March 2002. Complete information about eligibility and application procedures may be found at The Center's Web site: http://www.dirksencenter.org/grantcongresearchaward.htm. Frank Mackaman is the program officer (fmackaman@dirksencenter.org).

Since 1978, the Congressional Research Awards (formerly the Congressional Research Grants) program has paid out over $500,000 to support nearly 300 projects.

The Constitutional Convention

In May 1787, fifty-five delegates from 12 states met in Philadelphia. Delegates from the state of Rhode Island did not participate. Although the participants were authorized only to "revise" the Articles of Confederation, they developed a new structure for the government.

James Madison, the 4th President of the United States (1809-1817), proposed a resolution, known as the Virginia Plan, as a result of the early debates. This proposal was supported by the large states, and called for a bicameral (two-house) legislature empowered to make laws. The lower house would be elected by voters in each state and the upper house would be chosen by the lower house from candidates nominated by the state legislatures. State population would determine the representation in both houses. The legislature chose the executive for one term and appointed the executive responsible for making laws. The judges were also appointed by the legislature to one or more supreme courts and lower national courts. Laws, passed by the legislature or the states, could be vetoed by the executive and judges who made up the Council of Revision. A vote by both houses was needed to override a veto by the Council. To learn more about a bicameral legislature, visit CongressLink's "Features" section, including an explanation of basic congressional procedures, highlighting a selection entitled Bicameralism: Congress as Two Chambers. Download this selection at: http://www.congresslink.org/bicameral.htm.

Small states supported a less revolutionary departure from the Articles of Confederation. The New Jersey Plan supported the one-house legislature, with its powers expanded to include raising revenue and regulating commerce. The members would be chosen by the state legislatures and each state had only one vote. A proposal was made suggesting legislature elect a multi-person executive. Judges were appointed to the Supreme Court by the executives who were removable by action of the majority of the governors. The multi-person executive was authorized to compel obedience to the law, and the laws passed by the legislature were binding on the states. Visit our About Government "hot link" to learn more about the two plans that were used as the basis of the Constitution. Visit A Hot Summer in 1787 at: http://www.aboutgovernment.org/historicaldocuments.htm#constitution.

The allocation of representation in Congress continued to divide the Convention due to the rejection of The New Jersey Plan. The large states wanted proportional representation based on population. The small states demanded equal representation, meaning one state, one vote. The seats in the House of Representatives would be allocated according to the population of each state with members elected directly by the people. In the Senate, each state would have two senators, voting independently, chosen by their legislatures. These allocations were incorporated in The Great Compromise, also known as the Connecticut Compromise.

Can your students explain what The Great Compromise was, do they know why we have two houses in Congress, and can they distinguish between the meaning of equal and proportional representation? In our featured CongressLink lesson plan, The Great Compromise - A House Divided, students create their own solution to the problem of representation at the Constitutional Convention and read primary sources to gain different perspectives on the compromise that was actually reached. You can download this lesson and related handouts at: http://www.congresslink.org/lessonplans/HCGreatCompromise.htm.

In the southern states, slaves were a significant percentage of the population. A formula used by Congress in 1783 resolved the issue of counting slaves. Population was determined by adding the "whole number of free persons" and "three-fifths of all other persons." The phrase "all other persons" meant slaves. The delegates to the Constitutional Convention allowed the slave trade to continue by denying Congress the power to prohibit it before 1808. In addition to adopting the Three-Fifths Compromise, they agreed that fugitive slaves should be returned to their masters.

Mary S. Black, Sherry L. Field, and Mary Lee Webeck from the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at The University of Texas at Austin, received a Robert H. Michel Civic Education Grant of $5,000 to develop curricula in civic education appropriate for elementary (K-4), middle school (4-8), and high school (9-12) levels of social studies methods education courses for future teachers. This project is entitled Celebrating Freedom: Congressional Decision-Making. These curricula will focus on the process of congressional decision-making. Materials developed include a Web site where student lesson plans can be posted for free distribution and an electronic bulletin board and discussion area for each class. Student teachers receive instruction via the Web and regular classroom. They will create lessons to post on the Web site and learn about congressional decision-making through technology, primary sources, simulations, and field trips. To find more information about this project and others, visit:
http://www.dirksencenter.org/grantmichelciviced.htm#Michelwinners.

Although a one-person executive was accepted at the Convention, delegates debated how the president should be elected, either by Congress or the people. The president's term of office was also debated. The Electoral College was the solution. Electors were selected by the legislatures of each state that were equal to their total number of representatives in Congress. The electors then voted for two people. One of these two people could not be from their state. The person with the most votes became president and the individual with the next highest total became vice president. The House of Representatives decided the election with each state having one vote in the event of a tie. To help your students learn more about the president's qualifications and powers, have them register on our new site for kids - Congress for Kids - http://www.congressforkids.net/. The Executive Branch -Presidency -- http://www.congressforkids.net/executivebranch.htm offers a printable true or false quiz, or they can "Play More" to link to numerous online activities related to the presidency.

Compromise Connection

1. Which one was adopted to help settle the Constitutional Convention's debate over slavery?

A. The New Jersey Plan
B. The Great Compromise
C. The Virginia Plan
D. The Connecticut Compromise
E. The Three-Fifths Compromise

2. _______ _______ is a system in which parties receive seats in a legislative body roughly equal to their share of the votes. (Link to answer and definition: http://www.congresslink.org/glossary.html#P)

A. Commensurable depiction
B. Proportional representation
C. Equivalent delineation
D. Symmetrical portraiture

True or False: Forty-five delegates from 13 states, including Rhode Island, met in Philadelphia in May 1787 to develop a new structure for the government

Answers to December' s issue of Fun, Facts, and Trivia link here: http://www.webcommunicator.org/funfactstrivia1201ans.htm

Capitol Advantage Publishing Introduces "Washington At Your Fingertips"

WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 5, 2001) - Capitol Advantage recently announced a new publication Washington at your Fingertips, an interactive guide for students, teachers, and parents to use when visiting Washington, D.C. Washington at your Fingertips includes sections on all the memorials, historic places, and many museums, as well as information about each of the three branches of government and how they work. This publication, made to fit in your back pocket, is one stop shopping of information for any class trip to Washington. In addition, schools can customize the publication with school name and class trip dates on the cover and have 2-4 pages of inserts reflecting important information regarding the trip, such as, emergency numbers, itinerary, and specific contact information.

The original idea for Washington at your Fingertips came from schools that were using Capitol Advantage's flagship product Congress at your Fingertips. "Schools were asking if we had any publications that included not only Legislator information, but information on all of Washington for the students," said Greg Hansan, President, "...so we took their suggestions and designed a publication that served the class trip."

Ordering information can be found at: http://www.capitoladvantage.com/publishing/washington.html or for information, call Greg Hansan, Capitol Advantage Publishing, at
703-550-9500.

That will end our first issue of 2002! If you have questions, comments, or suggestions, contact Cindy Koeppel at ckoeppel@dirksencenter.org. Your feedback makes a difference! Encourage your colleagues to subscribe to the Communicator.