On April 23, as the Prime Minister of Japan was welcomed to Washington D.C by President Obama, the SHS We The People state championship team stood by.

Even with all new faces this year, the team has won state two years in row under the guidance of social studies teacher Tyson Emborg, and have had the opportunity to attend the competition in Washington DC.

We The People is a requirement for those who take AP Government. Junior Mackenzie Dougherty said she’s learned a lot about government from the experience.

Each student is required to write a four minute essay on a chosen topic then is subjected to six minutes of questions referring to the chosen topic.

Emborg teaches the students about the Magna Carta, the Constitution, trial by jury, due process, political parties, and the Declaration of Independence.   When the class is completed, you could say the students are well on their way to becoming the next great political celebrity. “I love learning about applicable government skills,” junior Julia Fenn said of the academic team.

The Wyoming state champions competed on Saturday and Sunday with the awards ceremony on Monday. Being a nationwide competition, Emborg was pleased with their performances. The team was divided into six units, and each unit was ranked separately then brought their scores together for a combined score of 31.

Unit 1 was 25th, Unit 2 was 22nd, Unit 3 ended 36th, Unit 4 was 46th, Unit 5 was 21st, and Unit 6 finished 36th.

This trip was not just for the stimulating academic advantages however. They were able to visit most of the National Monuments like the Holocaust Museum, and the Smithsonian.

Tuesday the team was supposed to be touring downtown Baltimore, but urban riots prevented the team from touring the city. They were also able to go to the senate and watch the opening gavel as Mitch McConnell was going after Harry Reid on Iran while the supreme court was hearing the gay marriage case.

On Friday they made their way to Mount Vernon and the 9/11 Memorial. Finally, ice cream in Georgetown capped off what was otherwise a serious adventure.