By Senators Mullet, Fain, Hobbs, Keiser, Hargrove, Ranker, McCoy, Hasegawa, Chase, Conway, Darneille, Jayapal, and Fraser

WHEREAS, The students of Tahoma High School enrolled in the We the People: The Citizen and Constitution program have exhibited superior knowledge of the Constitution of the United States and the lessons taught by our forefathers; and

WHEREAS, On Saturday, January 10, 2015, the state We the People competition was won by the team from Tahoma High School, marking the school's 18th state championship; and

WHEREAS, From April 24, 2015, to April 28, 2015, these students will represent their state at the 28th anniversary We the People National Finals in Washington, D.C., where they will aspire to uphold the standards of excellence for which Tahoma High School is known; and

WHEREAS, These students have immersed themselves in the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights, and their extraordinary understanding of the country's founding documents and principles and formidable debate skills have inspired those who have watched them progress to the level of state champions; and

WHEREAS, The Tahoma team is coached by Gretchen Wulfing, who was named Washington's Civic Educator of the Year in 2011 and who continues to ingrain in her students the importance of learning about American constitutional democracy and the contemporary relevance of the nation's founding documents and principles; and

WHEREAS, These students and their advisor were aided by We the People alumni, former students who helped prepare this year's debaters by volunteering countless hours as guest judges; and

WHEREAS, Since the creation of the We the People program in 1987, nearly 30 million students and 90,000 teachers from across the country have participated in enhancing civic education; and

WHEREAS, Studies have shown that 80 percent of high school seniors in the program are registered to vote, compared to an average of 37 percent among other high school seniors, proof that We the People instills greater interest in participating in government; and

WHEREAS, Tahoma High School has a distinguished record of excellence in competitions at the national level, placing fourth in the nation in 2000; capturing the Western Regional Award in 2001, 2008, and 2014; taking the top Unit Two in the Nation Award in 2003; placing in the top ten in 2012 and 2013; and earning the top Unit Five in the Nation Award in 2010 and 2011;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate honor Abigail Atchison, Lauren Baek, Grace Barnes, Coleman Blakely, Cecelia Cadenhead, Christopher Darcy, Jacob Davies, Brock DenHerder, MacKenzie Dress, Amy Folkerts, Renée Hancock, Alex Harr, Desirae Hayes-Vitor, Zachary Jones, Joanne Kunze, Katrina May, Dominic Minniti, Sydney Murrey, Madeleine Musard, Caroline Pedro, Jayaram Ravi, Megan Simmons, Lucille Tibbetts, Nadiya Upegui, Samuel Verkruyse, and Sophie Wulfing as "Warriors of the Constitution"; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be immediately transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the members of Tahoma High School's We the People team, team advisor Gretchen Wulfing, and Tahoma High School principal Terry Duty to convey the respect of this body for a job well done and to wish them success in their continuing endeavors.