By Cadonna Peyton
The Arizona Republic
June 16, 2002

http://www.arizonarepublic.com/news/articles/0616wgateteach16.html

Just as the first indictments of the Watergate burglars were being returned, Kathy Williams was starting her career as a history teacher.

"At the time it was unfolding in front of us and as a history and U.S. government teacher, you could use it as a textbook," she said.

Almost three decades later, the Mesa Dobson High School teacher thinks Watergate still serves as a pivotal point in American history.

Unfortunately, teachers say, high school students know little about the events that brought down Richard Nixon. While many teachers lived through Watergate and appreciate its significance, the scandal surrounding former President Clinton and Monica Lewinsky seems more important to students today.

"I've heard about Watergate and it being some kind of scandal but I still have no idea what it is," said Katie Socausky, a senior at Show Low High School, acknowledging that she knows more about Clinton.

Megyn Scott, a junior at Mountain Pointe High School in Ahwatukee Foothills, said she doesn't know much about Watergate because "it wasn't in our time."

Socausky and Scott know as much about Watergate as most high school students, said Matt Webb, who teaches history at Mountain Pointe. They know that it was a political scandal but beyond that, he said, they know little of the specifics such as who was the president at the time, what Watergate was and who was involved.

"Some seem to be aware of the Watergate scene in the film Forrest Gump. And that's all I have to say about that," Webb said.

To help teach the subject, Webb has his students watch old news reports about the scandal, Nixon's resignation and his pardon by President Ford. The objective is to have students evaluate the effect Watergate has had on the nation.

Webb said he doesn't get much of a reaction out of his students, who "believe that this is the norm for politicians."

"We live in an age where cynicism toward government and politics is learned at an early age," he said. "All the scandals of recent years and the lack of repercussions leaves many students with the impression that the system is corrupt."

Ellen Travis, a teacher at Desert Vista High School, also in Ahwatukee Foothills, said she gets the same from her students.

"They think what happened then still happens now but we just don't hear about it," she said.

These cynical attitudes are the main reason for teaching the subject today, said Glen Frakes, who remembers talking to students about Watergate when it was a current event.

Frakes, who has been teaching history in Gilbert Unified School District since 1973, said it is important for youths to understand Watergate because the future of our nation is at stake.

"Nixon damaged America's pride and confidence in the presidency, and what we really need to do now is restore it. I try to teach Watergate as a challenge of the future," he said.

"We have a choice: If we look at Watergate and say, 'OK, lying is right, stealing is OK,' then our civilization will decline and ultimately cease to exist. But it doesn't have to be the beginning of the end."

Reach the reporter at cadonna.peyton@arizonarepublic.com or (602) 444-7723.

Republic reporters Kristen Go and Lindsey Collom contributed to this article.