Honing one’s knowledge of the U.S. Constitution is practically a citizen’s obligation, but at the very least, an intriguing venture into grasping how the founding document came to be. Adult learners of any age, as well as public or home school students in grades 9 to 12, now have an opportunity to enhance that knowledge through a free course offered by semi-retired Professor of Constitutional Law, Karl Walling. Sponsored by the West Custer County Library, registration is now open for the year-long class that will convene at the Library Mondays, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. beginning October 6.
Custer Couty resident Walling, a well-published scholar on topics related to America’s founding, has convened public seminars for community learning across his teaching career at the University of Chicago, the U.S. Naval War College, and Harvard University.
When the Tribune had the privilege of sitting with Walling over coffee recently, he expanded both on the working text of the seminar, The Founders’ Constitution, and his motivation in offering the class. “I’m a GI Bill-supported product of the Great Books curriculum—St. John’s College, University of Chicago—and our seminar text and our approach to it are reflections of that. I love focusing this sort of open and inquisitive discussion with others.”
Walling’s approach to the subject—the founders’ debates about the formation of the Constitution—is “Socratic,” that is, the eliciting of questions provoked by, and rooted in, the readings drawn from the first volume of documents anthologized by the author/editors of the 1989 five volume series, The Founders’ Constitution. “Each week we’ll look into three or four of the founders’ debates that are most likely to inspire conversation. They didn’t always agree, and raised some very interesting questions.” As we chatted, Walling illustrated the latter with the example of the Founders’ querying by what right one generation had to bind future generations. Thomas Jefferson and James Madison had differing outlooks on this, and to follow their discussion in the present day is, and will be for seminar participants, a muscular engagement with critical thinking.
“I will not shape conclusions,” Walling emphasized; “What is likely to emerge, though, is another set of questions!” He further noted that this is a non-partisan undertaking, learning for learning’s sake, an exercise in following the debates leading up to framing, ratifying, and interpreting the 1787 Constitution.
In order to maintain a learning environment in seminar style, at least ten, but no more than twenty participants will be registered for the class. Of note, high school students will receive a transcript of their studies, and if they do well in the course will also receive a letter of recommendation from Walling for any college or university to which they apply. Breaks in the seminar sessions will occur in line with the Custer County High School calendar schedule. Registration can be made online through the Library’s website: westcusterlibrary.org on the Events Page, or in person at the Library.
Sprinkled throughout our conversation with Walling was the word “experimental,” indicating the dynamic of both open-ended, open-minded learning, and the new venture the Founders were passionately set upon in the formation of “a more perfect union.” Those who will be exploring some of these original documents with Walling, who was a graduate assistant to the anthologists of these texts, are in for an expansive venture of their collective own. We encourage registration and enrollment, with less than a month to go before study of The Founders’ Constitution and its major themes convene at the Library on October 6.
To sign up click this link: https://www.westcusterlibrary.org/events/the-founders-constitution-2025-10-06/
– W.A. Ewing
