Tennessee Star Constitution Bee Winner Goes to Washington, D.C., Meets Federal D.C. Circuit Court Judge

Noah Farley, the winner of the Tennessee Star Constitution Bee, flew to Washington, D.C. to attend a lecture delivered by United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit Judge Thomas Griffith at Hillsdale College’s Kirby Center for the Constitution on Thursday night.

Farley earned a trip to Washington, D.C. for himself and his father with his victory in the inaugural Tennessee Star Constitution Bee, held at Sycamore High School in Pleasant View, Tennessee and hosted by Cheatham County Schools on September 23. The airfare and lodging for the trip was paid for by The Polk Foundation, sponsor of the Tennessee Star Constitution Bee.

The 17-year-old homeschooled senior plans to attend Patrick Henry College in Virginia next fall. After completing his undergraduate studies, he plans on going to law school and becoming a constitutional lawyer.

The topic of the lecture was “Judicial Conservativism in a Liberal Democracy.”

In addition to Judge Griffith, Professor Bradley Watson of St. Vincent College was also a featured speaker.

According to the Kirby Center description of the event:

Thomas B. Griffith was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in 2005. He earned his B.A. from Brigham Young University and his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law. He previously served as the chief legal officer of the United States Senate and as assistant to the president and general counsel of Brigham Young University.

Bradley C.S. Watson is the Philip M. McKenna professor in American and Western Political Thought and co-director of the Center for Political and Economic Thought at St. Vincent College. He received his B.A. from the University of British Columbia, his J.D. from Queen’s University Faculty of Law, his M.A. from Claremont Graduate University, his M.Phil. from the Institute of Philosophy at the Catholic University of Louvain, and his Ph.D. from Claremont Graduate University. He is author of several books, including Living Constitution, Dying Faith: Progressivism and the New Science of Jurisprudence.

The next Tennessee Star Constitution Bee will be held in Williamson County on April 28, and is open to all secondary school students from 7th grade to 12th grade enrolled in public schools, private schools, or home school programs in the state of Tennessee.

The first place winner will earn a free trip to Washington, D.C. for themselves and a parent, and additional prizes will be awarded to second place and third place winners.

Students interested in participating in the April 28 Tennessee Star Constitution Bee can sign up here.