On September 17, 1776, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention met for the last time to sign the document they had created, the US Constitution. In 2004, the US Congress mandated that any educational institution that receives Federal funding is required to hold educational programming about the US Constitution.
This commemoration had its origin in 1940, when Congress passed a joint resolution authorizing and requesting the President to issue annually a proclamation setting aside the third Sunday in May for the public recognition of all who had attained the status of American citizenship. The designation for this day was “I Am An American Day.”
In 1952 Congress repealed this joint resolution and passed a new law moving the date to September 17 to commemorate “the formation and signing, on September 17, 1787, of the Constitution of the United States.” The day was still designated as “Citizenship Day” and retained its original purpose of recognizing all those who had attained American citizenship.
This law urged civil and educational authorities of states, counties, cities and towns to make plans for the proper observance of the day and “for the complete instruction of citizens in their responsibilities and opportunities as citizens of the United States and of the State and locality in which they reside.”
Information and resources for all UP community members can be found at this link, according to Anne Santiago, political science.
On Tuesday, September 13, the Department of Political Science will conduct a presentation in honor of Constitution Day, titled “Is the System Fair? Perspectives on the American Electoral System,” in St. Mary’s Lounge at 7 p.m. This presentation will discuss the constitutional foundation of the electoral system in the United States and then consider the implications of that system in today’s world.