About the Project
The purpose of "Shaping the Constitution" is to bring important documents from the Library of Virginia and the Library of Congress related to America's Founding Era and the United States Constitution to the classroom and to the general public.
Version one of "Shaping the Constitution" covers the American Revolution and Early Republic Eras, leading users through the development and creation of the Declaration of Independence, the unamended Constitution of the United States, and the United States Bill of Rights. Regular updates of the site will increase the content to cover the 13th, 14th, 15th, 19th, and 24th amendments of the Constitution and will add functionality to the site including an interactive timeline of events and an "explainer page" to help answer frequently asked questions and explain some of the more difficult concepts and relationships.
This project has been in the works since September 2008, when the Library of Virginia received funding through the Library of Congress's Teaching with Primary Sources Initiative. The mission of the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources program is to build a consortium that fosters collaborations between the Library of Congress and the educational community to increase instructional use of digitized primary sources within K–12 classrooms.
Thanks to funding in part by a grant from Teaching with Primary Sources Eastern Regional Pilot Program, Tameka Hobbs, the Library of Virginia's Program and Education Coordinator, was able to organize a great team to create this Web site:
John Kaminski, Director of the Center for the Study of the American Constitution at the University of Wisconsin, Madison
Brent Tarter, Program Manager
Maria Kimberly, Resource Development Coordinator
Evan Liddiard, Jr., Education Intern & Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Graduate
Kristin Tremper, Education Intern (September 2008–July 2009) & VCU Graduate Student
Myja Thibault, Education Intern (September 2008–June 2009) & VCU Graduate Student
Kevin Carpenter, Education Intern (September 2008–June 2009) & VCU Undergraduate Student
Susan Gilliam, Educational Assistant (until May 2009)
Bill Humm of Light Heavy Industries, Web Designer
Kathleen Jordan, Digital Initiatives & Web Services Manager
T. J. Rowland, Digital Collections Applications Developer
Jason Roma, Web Developer
Christine Sisic, Graphic Designer
Michelle L. England, Graphic Design Intern
Staff of Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources—Northern Virginia Alliance