Constitution is front and "center" at Montpelier

In the months leading up to the Constitutional Convention of 1787 in Philadelphia, James Madison, then a part-time politician and tobacco farmer, paced the upstairs floorboards of his Montpelier mansion in Orange County. In preparation for the summer convention, in which the brightest minds from all over a young America hammered out a new form of government, the 36-year-old Madison studied the past failures of democratic experiments and other world governments on his farm. It was in those months of research and meditation that Madison truly forged his title of "Father of the Constitution," delving deep within himself and history to create the structure for the world's most successful democracy.
Today on those same grounds, a similar devotion to Constitutional study continues through Montpelier's Center for the Constitution. In an isolated corner of the estate, citizens and scholars, teachers and police officers engage the document that founded America's modern democracy and in much the same way that Madison did, contemplate the beauties and challenges of self-governance.
"We tell people that there must be something about the dirt here," said Doug Smith, executive director for the center. "Orange County might not always realize it, but it launched modern democracy. It's Orange County, VA that pushed Madison into public service; otherwise he's just another tobacco farmer trying to make ends meet."
When speaking about the magic of Montpelier's dirt, trees and air and the power of solitude, Smith suggests that true political thought is sometimes easier outside of the Washington battlegrounds.
"When you come here there's a serenity and you realize this is how the Constitution got thought out," said Smith. "You think about what happens in D.C. and it's not because of the chaos that's always been the capitol that the Constitution got written. It's because someone took the time out and was inspired by the community and the mountains and the peacefulness of this place." The Center for the Constitution was established in 2003 during the restoration period of Montpelier. If the mansion and grounds of Montpelier celebrate Madison's life, the center celebrates his legacy in the pages of the Constitution.
"We would be nothing without the mansion," said Smith. "And in some ways, the mansion would just be a historic home without us."
The Center for the Constitution offers something far beyond seventh-grade civics class for those working on the front lines of the Constitution's influences, notably teachers and police officers. Since the center's inception, Smith said more than 4,000 police officers and educators have taken part in center programs and seminars. Courses are also offered for politicians, judges and the general public, including a free course online. It typically takes a week or a weekend to complete a seminar or course, said Smith, and all courses are taught by Constitutional scholars from all over the country.
"Montpelier has always had a tremendous tradition of significant scholarship about governance, going all the way back to Madison," said Smith. "We don't dumb it down. We've very serious about scholarship here. And it's not that we want you to know where all the periods are in the Constitution or the difference between Article 1 and Article 3; we want you to think constitutionally."
To Smith and the center, thinking constitutionally is a personal exercise and not something that can be spoon-fed. With the inflection of an insult, Smith uses the phrase "think tank," to describe what the center is not, an environment suggestive of its name, cold and stainless steel, where ideas aren't enhanced or improved but are more easily sterilized into something less special and more common. In the same vein he mentions the existence of many Constitution centers across the county and the political leanings of many of them.
"There are lots of Constitution centers and groups that attempt to educate citizens on the Constitution, but I would say there are few that do it as well as we do," said Smith. "Many of those come from a partisan or ideological perspective. We are so hyper-vigilant about being non-partisan and non-ideological. We want to make sure that when people come and are trained and participate in one of our seminars, they can trust that they're able to do what Madison would want them to do, which is make up their own mind about the Constitution. We're not here to manufacture Americans, we're here to help people discover and rediscover the American Constitution."
In a 2010 nationwide survey conducted by the center, the majority of those polled admitted to only having read portions of the Constitution and two-thirds said they hadn't read it since high school or college. Perhaps suggesting the necessity of centers such as the one at Montpelier, nearly half of those that participated in the survey said they understood only some of the Constitution.
"It's vital to have an institution that can help us think about the Constitution in the 21st Century," said Beth Morrill, media relations manager for Montpelier. "Think about how many times the Constitution is mentioned on the news every week. We want people from Virginia and all over the country to be educated, so that when you see a news story where a pundit mentions the Constitution or says something is unconstitutional, you have the tools to analyze it for yourself and determine if they're telling the truth."
Amid the partisanship and bedlam of most political discussions regarding the Constitution, Smith says the center serves as somewhat of an oasis for visiting politicians.
"If politicians want to have a political fisticuffs, there are plenty of places to do that," said Smith. "But folks come here because they're probably serious and want to learn about the Constitution."
Pointing to a politician he believes uses the center the right way, Smith singled out 30th District Delegate Ed Scott.
"Ed is here all the time, he's a great friend of the center," said Smith. "I hate to say it this way, but the kinds of politicians that would come to the center are already eager to leave their partisanship at the door."
Smith has served as the center's director since September, Constitution Day to be more specific, replacing the current COO of Montpelier, Sean O'Brien. During the interview process, Smith said he used his background in theological study to land the job.
"I told Sean and Michael [Quinn, President of the Montpelier Foundation] that I wasn't a Constitutional scholar, but that if they wanted someone who was comfortable dealing with old and controversial documents and forming an opinion on them, I was their guy," said Smith.
Currently there are a few new tools in the works Smith hopes will make it easier for the digital generations to experience the Constitution.
"Right now, we're developing a Bill of Rights mobile app and an online course on the Bill of Rights," said Smith.
On this particular Thursday, though, the large classroom in the Center sat dimmed and empty and there were no visiting delegations from Afghanistan or Sri Lanka or South Africa, as is often the case. On this day Smith sat on the edge of a circle of leather chairs that often serves as the arena of Constitutional debate and was flanked by the entire governing document hanging on the walls, split into four frames. Borrowing from his graduate study in theology, Smith was able to come up with a favorite passage from Madison's masterpiece of self-governance.
"The most important words are exactly how it starts out," he said. "'We the people.' That tells you first off that this government is ours, we own it. That should be a scathing inspiration to any of us who complain about the government."