With little to show but enthusiasm, the development staff at the National Constitution Center managed to fund a dream.

By Margaret Battistelli Gardner

“As part of the original agreement, the feds put $66 million toward the $108 million of public money,” Seiter says. “[Losing that support] gives us interpretive independence, and we don’t have to be at the vagueries of budget and decision making in Washington.

“So it’s scary, but it also gives us an autonomy that’s beautiful,” she adds. “We’re committed to being a nonpartisan organization, so without having to rely on any government money, we don’t have to worry about who’s in political power.”