PARKERSBURG, WV. — Fifth-grade students at Jefferson Elementary School got an up-close lesson in American constitutional history Thursday when members of the Wood County Bar Association visited the school as part of the Scholar Exchange initiative, a program that connects legal professionals with students for educational presentations.
The day's session centered on slavery's role in shaping the Constitution and the Civil War that followed. John Williams, president of the Wood County Bar Association, led the presentation, walking students through the difficult compromises the nation's Founders made when drafting the Constitution — including provisions such as the Three-Fifths Clause, the Fugitive Slave Clause, and the Slave Trade Clause, which allowed Congress to ban the slave trade but not until 1808.
The program, developed by the National Constitution Center, also explored how westward expansion intensified the national debate over slavery, as the question of whether newly admitted states would permit or restrict the practice became increasingly contentious in the years leading up to the Civil War.
Kaylie Allen, the association's vice president, said she believes age should not be a barrier to tackling difficult topics in the classroom. The Scholar Exchange program is built around the idea that open conversation and student engagement are just as important as the content itself.