This class is about ORIGINAL INTENT and leverages videos and materials from a longer, 12-week class provided by Institute on the Constitution (IOTC).  Most importantly, we use original source materials throughout the class for both validation and context. 

 

The Federalist Papers, for example, are explanations by our Founders of what they meant and why each part of the Constitution was included.  The 1828 Webster Dictionary is used to understand the meaning of words at the time, many of which were very different than their meaning today.

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Other original source documents are also used, including transcripts of Convention and State ratification debates and personal letters.  We can know what they meant.

 

We will not discuss politics.  This class is open to everyone who wants to learn about our Constitution, which is where our focus will be.

 

Over a nine-week period, we will review and discuss our Founding documents.  The class includes videos, lectures and discussion. 

 

Students will receive and take home specially selected materials, including our Founding documents, letters, essays, and articles that will illuminate original intent. 

 

We will learn where our Founders got their ideas for our form of government:

• What role, if any, did Christianity play in our Founding?

• What were the key principles on which our government was founded?​

• Who were the major influencers on our Founders?

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We will go through our Founding documents, learn and understand what they actually say, and discuss examples of current day events in light of their original meaning.

• ​The Declaration of Independence

• The Articles of Confederation

• The Constitution of the United States

  • All seven Articles​

  • All twenty-seven Amendments