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For fourteen years, the Byron R. White Center for the Study of American Constitutional Law (BWC) has hosted the Constitution Day Project to provide law students and attorney volunteers the opportunity to teach thought-provoking and current constitutional questions to Colorado high school students. Law students went to high schools across the state to teach nearly 2,000 students about freedom of speech. Their questions covered the First Amendment and its protections, how schools limit their speech rights, Jimmy Kimmel, and AI. The discussions were lively, and the discussion facilitators encouraged opinions and thoughts from young minds to see what Colorado’s future holds.����

The Constitution Day Project seeks to commemorate the signing of the U.S. Constitution, introduce critical thinking and legal analysis to high school students, and foster an ongoing conversation between these students and the legal community. The impression law students leave on high schoolers is a significant reason the Constitution Day Project continues to be a popular tradition every year.��

Colorado law student volunteers expressed the value of connecting with younger students. Gianni Magnini ’27 shared, “I think getting to teach people about their civil rights, especially in times like these, can be extremely fulfilling. It helped me feel like I could actually do something to perform my civic duty beyond being one of millions of voters in an election. Also, it was fun to be the cold caller for once.”�� ��

Magnini had the opportunity to teach Noah Zeppelin’s history class at Cherry Creek High School. “I have had [Colorado Law’s] Constitution Day speakers in my US History classes for a number of years now, and I am always impressed by the way that the lesson directly applies to my students’ lives,” Zeppelin said. “It is always a fun, worthwhile day for both the students and me.”��

“From my own personal experience, this is a great way for us law students to give back and stay connected to the community we serve; it is the reason I did it every year in law school and will continue to do so as a practicing attorney,” M.R. Dickey ’26 said. “Having students reach out to me after to ask about my experience and even to satiate their own curiosity on what we discussed is so meaningful.”��

Judie Sievers, a teacher at Nederland Middle-Senior High School, remarked on how much the student-to-student engagement meant to her class. Specifically, in discussions during the “hypothetical case” activity. “The activity culminated in a lively classroom debate where students presented and defended their arguments just like real lawyers,” Sievers said. “Madeline [Clark] and Olivia’s [Sharp] enthusiasm and energy kept everyone engaged—and by the end, many students were inspired to consider careers in law themselves.”����

Hannah Loiselle ’26, another student volunteer, remarked that she overheard one ninth grader ask her teacher whether their government class “would have debates ‘like this one’ because she really liked it.” Another student spoke to Loiselle and asked about her law school experience.����

At the time of Constitution Day, there was increased national dialogue on exercise of freedom of speech. One volunteer shared that navigating this experience with high school students was worrying at first. However, once the volunteer met the students and realized how welcoming and excited they were, she breathed a sigh of relief. She said this was especially relevant considering that “Jimmy Kimmel happened on Wednesday night! Luckily there was just enough news Thursday morning so that I could draw a dotted line between ABC/Disney and the FTC, in response to questions about the state versus private actors’ part of the lesson.” The students wrestled with these difficult questions during the class, but worked to share their ideas while engaging with curriculum.��

Andrew Nosler ’27 taught a group of upperclassmen at Rocky Mountain High School, “[T]he students attacked [the lesson] with such amazing engagement and liveliness. My favorite part was when we held ‘fake court’ to resolve a hypothetical free speech issue. The students completely knocked it out of the park. I could tell that they understood some of the First Amendment principles which impact their daily lives, and they were eager to criticize or defend those principles. Once we had started investigating scenarios that could be reflected by their lived experience at school, the students enthusiastically jumped into conversation and debate. I think the Constitution Day program was a wild success, and I should expect that many of those students move past our lesson with some newfound interest in their own civil rights and the Constitution more broadly.”��

The BWC is grateful to all volunteers and high school participants who took part in this year’s Constitution Day Project. If you’re interested in being involved next year, ����