Hello everyone! Welcome to Ms. Mitnick's blog. This Spring, I was fortunate enough to receive notification that I had won a Congressional Fellowship from the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation. The Congressional Fellowship is an opportunity to work for a month during the summer in the office of a Congressman or Senator and to observe how the Constitution guides the work of Congress. It is awarded to just two history teachers in the country. I will be working in the office of Congressman Jason Altmire (D-4th), who not only represents the community in which I live, but also part of the school district where I teach 8th grade Civics & Economics. For more information, see the recent article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08146/884083-54.stm
In one of the essays I wrote for my application, I explained that it would be the dream of any Civics teacher to take a Time Machine back to observe the debates at the Constitutional Convention of 1787. Since that request is not yet technologically possible, I got my next best request -- to observe how the Constitution, written in 1787, guides the work of Congress in 2008. As part of my Congressional Fellowship, I'll get to help evaluate legislation, observe the work of committees, attend hearings, learn how members of Congress interact, and take part in addressing the needs of constituents. The purpose of the James Madison Congressional Fellowship is to give teachers firsthand knowledge of how Congress works so that they can then share what they learn with their students. When the school year starts again in the Fall, I'll have a wealth of knowledge and numerous real examples to help make Congress come alive for my students. I leave for Washington, DC on Saturday and I can't wait!
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