Scott BresslerOn Wednesday evening, the Gephardt Institute of Public Service hosted for the first time the “We the People” Intercollegiate Trivia Face-Off, between Saint Louis University (SLU) and Washington University in the Mudd Multipurpose Room.
The event, which commemorated the 220th anniversary of the Constitution, drew in about 20 spectators from both schools.
The event’s organization, which began in August, was primarily the work of Evan Krauss, the Gephardt Scholar in the Masters of Social Work program.
“We wanted to make it intercollegiate,” said Krauss, “we wanted to make it exciting and we wanted to foster competition among our campuses.”
Krauss contacted student leaders from both campuses and established two teams of five students, composed of campus organization leaders and law students. The teams attempted to bring together students of different political viewpoints.
Representing the University were law students Bryan Boyle, Seth Bridge and Justin Gelfand; Samuel Gittle, president of College Republicans; and Chloe White, a representative of College Democrats.
As a way to celebrate Constitution Day, the trivia face-off attempted to foster a sense of community and a better understanding of the citizen’s role in the life of the constitution.
“What was great about this event is that we had both undergraduate and law students; it got a different group of people working together,” said Robin Hattori, program director for the Gephardt Institute.
Round one, the lightning round, covered the history of the documents and its subsequent amendments. SLU struck an early lead over the University, scoring 1000 points to 800.
After a short break in the action, Washington University started round two with renewed vigor.
In this round, the teams were given famous court cases and were asked to summarize the major decision and analyze its constitutional importance. The University fared better this round, receiving 420 points to SLU’s 380.
In round three, which tested student knowledge of critical constitutional issues of today, teams were given a subject and were asked to describe two relevant constitutional issues. The University, given the subject of same-sex marriage, overtook SLU, who were given the subject of Guantánamo Bay. The University earned 150 points, compared to SLU’s 100.
In the end, victory and bragging rights went to the team from SLU, who finished on top after a final score of 1480 to 1370.
“It was exciting to be here,” said a junior from SLU. “I’ve never seen a Constitution Bowl before.”
Students who attended the event seemed to experience it as an exciting and enriching one.
“It was fun,” said White, “though we obviously need to work on our lightning round skills for next year.”
Whether the Gephardt Institute will hold a face-off next year remains in question.
“We would like to attract more undergraduates to the program to make it an annual tradition,” said Hattori.
Scott Johnson, a second year law student at the University, had choice words for the face-off: “We came here to celebrate our Constitution. We need to continue to foster understanding of it, because too many simply don’t.”