Fresh off the heels of its close victory over Hollis Brookline High School at the New Hampshire state competition, the Milford High School "We the People" team, led by coach Dave Alcox, is beginning to prepare for its national competition in Washington, D.C.

On Friday, Jan. 8, the teams of Milford High School and Hollis Brookline High School – the sole competitors in the state of New Hampshire – went head-to-head in a competition of constitutional knowledge.

Milford, veteran champions of the competition, defeated HB by a narrow margin of two points out of a possible 2,000. The win crowned the Milford team as the state champions for the 14th time over the past 18 years of the competition.

"We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution," a project of the Center for Civic Education, is a program focused on fostering civic participation and providing an immersive education for elementary and secondary school students.

Students spend an extended period of time learning about various aspects of the U.S. government, all having their roots in the nation’s founding document. Students are then split up into teams of three, and become experts on their designated topic.

At competitions, judges – most of whom are law professionals – question groups about their subject area, allowing students to prove their mastery of the topic.

Now chosen to represent the state of New Hampshire, the Milford High team will travel to D.C. in April to continue to the final stage of the competition.

In the month since the state competition, the team has worked to raise funds for the trip, most recently selling Valentine’s Day cakes and attending various community events to sell valentines and ask for donations. The Milford School Board has also generously contributed to the team.

This past week, the Milford team planned to sell cookies and other goods at Milford Middle School, the town’s polling place for the primary election. Students also planned to set up a bake sale at the high school later in the week, and a calendar raffle for the month of March.

The team is looking forward to the competition in April and hopes to make a strong performance representing New Hampshire.

Hannah Waris is a senior at Milford High School.

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