BY JOE OLENICK

joe.olenick@lockportjournal.com

NEWFANE— When it comes to the U.S. Constitution, Tessa Nasca has plenty to say about it.

Nasca participated in the American Legion High School Oratorical Scholarship Program Constitutional Speech Contest. A junior at Newfane High School, Nasca placed first in the school district, first in Niagara County and second in all of Western New York.

Students had to give an eight- to 10-minute speech on some aspect of the Constitution. Nasca wrote and then gave her speech, plus in the later rounds of the contest, had to give an impromptu speech on a given Constitutional topic. Aside from her interests in politics and international relations, Nasca said she is also into history, which could be what led her to do a speech about the Constitution.

Nasca is involved with lacrosse, Student Senate and the Model United Nations. Model U.N. is a club that allows students to participate in simulated U.N. conferences and discuss international issues from the point of view of different countries. She took some time off from her busy schedule to talk with the Union-Sun & Journal about the contest, campaigning against malaria in Africa and Chief Justice John Marshall.

QUESTION: What did you have to do for the contest?

ANSWER: It’s run by the American Legion. The task was to write an eight- to 10-minute speech on some aspect of the Constitution. It was very open-ended, you could take whatever approach you wanted. For the first level (of competition), you just had to have the speech, it didn’t have to be memorized. But as you went on, it had to be memorized; and the last two levels I participated in, I had to give an impromptu, two- to four-minute speech about one of four topics on the Constitution that could be chosen.

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Q: How did you do?

A: The last round I was in was Western New York and some counties to the east of us. Only the first-place winner goes on. I placed first in the school district, first in the county and second for Western New York.

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Q: Can you describe your speech?

A: The approach I took to my speech was how John Marshall impacted our nation through his interpretation of the Constitution. He was Supreme Court Chief Justice 1801 until 1835 and he had a very loose interpretation. That set the precedent of the Constitution as a changeable document and something that isn’t strict. There’s room for interpretation. For the impromptu speech, I got lucky, both times I had the same choice: Article 3, section 3. It outlines what the United States defines as treason. So I gave a short speech on treason and how the definition outlined in the Constitution was different from previous ones by allowing disagreements and petitions to government without being considered treason.

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Q: What activities are you involved in?

A: My favorite extracurricular is Model U.N. Recently, I traveled to Europe for a Model United Nations conference. That’s something I hope to get into for my career: international relations and political science. Besides that, I’m involved with Student Senate, of which I’m co-president. I also play bass in the pit for the school musicals. I used to do some sports, but this year cross country wouldn’t fit in with the meetings for the international Model U.N. conference. But I’ll pick up lacrosse in the spring.

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Q: What about in the community?

A: This past fall, I started a campaign in my church, St. Brendan’s on the Lake, to raise money for malaria prevention. It raised around $1,600, which was sent through the U.N. to nations in Africa to provide them with malaria nets.

Contact reporter Joe Olenickat 439-9222, ext. 6241.