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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Robert H. Michel Civic Education Grants Awarded

The Dirksen Congressional Center awarded the following six projects with financial support in the form of a Robert H. Michel Civic Education Grant:

- Paul Becker, Great Neck North High School, Great Neck, NY, Impeach the President - Using Mock Trials to Teach About Congress

- Michele Cole, Little Miami High School, Morrow, Ohio, Lesson Plan Strategies to engage All Students

- Sarah Dwelle, Maggie L. Walker Governor's School for Government and International Studies, Richmond, VA, Promoting Civic Involvement Through Simulated Elections and Related Activities

- Michael Gizzi, Mesa State College, Grand Junction, CO, Web-based Simulations of the Legislative Process

- Virginia Jelatis, Department of History, Western Illinois University, Uncharted Waters: The Continental Congress Online

- Melani McAlister, George Washington University Center for Public Culture and History, Teaching Civics through Film

Abstracts providing further information about these projects are posted at: http://www.dirksencenter.org/grants_overview.htm.

STUDYING CIVIL RIGHTS AND BREAKING DOWN SEGREGATION

The Dirksen Congressional Center's Web suite contains much information about the nation's struggle to eliminate segregation codified in law and de facto segregation based on income and housing patterns.

If your students are interested in the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education, for example, they can print and complete the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court case word search found on Congress for Kids at: http://www.congressforkids.net/games/judicialbranch/2_judicialbranch.htm.

The AboutGovernment site - http://www.aboutgovernment.org - contains many links to Web-based resources about desegregation and landmark legal cases. For example, introduce your students to Little Rock 9, Integration 0? -- A Collaborative WebQuest on Racial Desegregation in Schools at: http://www.aboutgovernment.org/print_usgov_jud_supreme.htm. This site includes a teacher's guide, background information, questions, a framework for writing a thoughtful essay, and a form students can use to build a thesis statement.

Are your students interested in knowing more about the Supreme Court, where so many of the key legal decisions are made? AboutGovernment's Judicial Branch section --
http://www.aboutgovernment.org/print_usgov_jud_supreme.htm -- includes a site hosted by CourtTV.com that offers information and virtual tours of the Old Supreme Court (1810), the Old Senate Chamber (1860), the current Court, and a Supreme Court Trivia Quiz.

One of the dominating factors in our nation's approach to integration has been the relationship between the courts and the U.S. Congress. Our CongressLink lesson plan-- Congress and the Courts -- http://www.congresslink.org/print_lp_courts.htm -- will teach students that the judiciary needs an environment respectful of its mission and that the legislative branch seeks a judicial system that faithfully interprets its laws and efficiently discharges justice.

In addition to our Web-based programs, The Center also supports research on such topics as civil rights and minority representation. The Center recently made a Congressional Research Award to Danielle White of American University for her project, Do You See What I See: Perceptions of Representation by African American U.S. Representatives. To learn more about this project and other research funded by The Center visit: http://www.dirksencenter.org/print_grants_CRAs_table.htm.

Breaking Down Segregation, Building Up Knowledge

1. In Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the idea of "separate but equal" was declared unconstitutional because it violated which idea contained in the 14th Amendment?

A) Legal Rights
B) "Equal Protection Under Law"
C) Judicial Review
D) Segregation

2. Trivia: Who argued for the plaintiff in Brown v. Board of Education before the Supreme Court in 1955?

3. Busing, which was the main vehicle for ending segregation, was strongly attacked in both the North and the South. The imposition of busing often led to ___________.

A) integration
B) white "backlash"
C) desegregation
D) white flight

4. True or False: Active legal measures intended to bring two ethnic groups together or actively designing government policies to mix different races is called "desegregation."

Answers to June's issue of Fun, Facts, and Trivia link here: http://www.webcommunicator.org/funfactstrivia0602ans.htm.

Happy Independence Day! If you have questions, comments, or suggestions, contact Cindy Koeppel at mailto:ckoeppel@dirksencenter.org. Your feedback makes a difference! Encourage your colleagues to subscribe to the Communicator.

If you experience any problem, send an e-mail to Cindy Koeppel at mailto:ckoeppel@dirksencenter.org.