Open Enrollment Introduction to the Constitution

October 22-24, 2010

ENROLL ONLINE

The Introduction to the Constitution Seminar is open to any participant paying the tuition on a first-come-first-served basis. The seminar is intended to provide participants with a foundational knowledge of the Constitution, and with a firm grounding in its origins, purposes, and ongoing importance and relevance.  The Seminar will focus on the U.S. Constitution, the Declaration of Independence and its relationship to the Constitution, the debate over the Constitution's ratification between the Federalists and Antifederalists,  the origin of the Bill of Rights, and such permanent constitutional and political principles as liberty, republicanism, federalism, representation, separation of powers, and checks and balances.  It will include a discussion of constitutional interpretation from a nonpartisan perspective, and will conclude with a discussion of the meaning of citizenship under the system of government created by the Constitution.

DRAFT AGENDA (.pdf, 49.08kb)

Tuition for the Introduction to the Constitution program is $699, which is all-inclusive, providing you with single accommodations on the Montpelier property, all meals associated with the program (dinner on Friday through lunch on Sunday), reading materials, and the seminar itself.  A discounted rate is available for couples (2nd participant for $300, shared accommodations for a total of $999) and commuters ($499, which does not include lodging).  Montpelier Members will receive a $50 discount on tuition.

This seminar is open to the general public.  To register to attend the Introduction to the Constitution seminar, you have two options:

1.) Enroll Online: Click Here

2.) Contact Susan Simpson at (540) 672-2728 x200, or ssimpson@montpelier.org, with your name, address, phone number, and email address.  Enrollment will be on a first-come, first-served basis, so the earlier you contact us, the better chance you have of securing your spot.  

Eugene Hickok is a former Deputy Secretary at the U.S. Department of Education and once Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Education.  Hickok has also taught political science at Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA, and served as special assistant in the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel.  His writings have appeared in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Education Week, The Washington Post, The Washington Times, and other publications.

• The Declaration of Independence
  
• The Articles of Confederation
  
• The United States Constitution
• "Vices of the Political System of the United States," James Madison, 1787
  
• James Madison's letter to George Washington on April 16, 1787
• The speeches of James Madison and James Wilson during the Philadelphia Convention {July 5, 13, 14, 1787}
  
• James Wilson's speech on October 6, 1787
  
• The Federalist:  

No. 1

No. 10

No. 39

No. 51

• "Introduction" in Eugene W. Hickok, Jr. The Bill of Rights: Original Meaning and Current Understanding, 1991
• Marbury v. Madison (1803)
• McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
• Barron v. Baltimore (1833)
• Gitlow v. New York (1925)