11-02-2019, 07:14 PM
(10-29-2019, 10:57 AM)mysonx3 Wrote: Has anyone here ever done or seen someone do their capstone on the topic of a constitutional question?
I start my Capstone on Monday and have been planning to do something related to the school-prison pipeline, but that topic doesn't really excite me (not that I have to do something exciting). Last night I was chatting with a friend about a few constitutional questions and realized that's something I really enjoy researching/thinking about/talking about, and it struck me that I might consider doing something along those lines for my Capstone paper. I'd imagine it wouldn't be too hard to find sources (between court opinions and law review journals, not to mention the actual Constitution and federal statutes).
What are potential drawbacks to this approach? Would a professor allow it? I would pick an issue (I've got a few floating around in my mind) that is more theoretical than issues-based because I don't want to write about something that's going to be divisive along left/right lines.
If writing directly about a constitutional question is ill-advised, what about the following topic: What sort of political issues/movements/groups tend to employ/attempt various "non-traditional" policymaking tactics (e.g. impact litigation, attempting to call a convention of the states, nullification, etc.)?
Any advice would be appreciated.
My advice.
Any topic you choose to write about, create a summary and fully discuss with your mentor. Break down why you have a passion for the topic, how it fits into your degree/learning plan and outline its potential impact. Ultimately, its the mentor providing the grade for the capstone paper, doing something the mentor doesn't want to read or agree with can cause issues with the final grade.
Additional thought. Remember the goal, graduate with a bachelors degree, and ensuring nothing prevents it from happening (pick your battles wisely).
Would the constitutional thesis be better served during a master's program?