Constitution Day (United States)

Constitution Day (or Citizenship Day) is an American federal holiday that recognizes the ratification of the United States Constitution. It is observed on September 17, the day the U.S. Constitutional Convention signed the Constitution in 1787.

The law establishing the holiday was created in 2004 with the passage of an amendment by Senator Robert Byrd to the Omnibus spending bill of 2004. Before this law was enacted, the holiday was known as "Citizenship Day". In addition to renaming the holiday "Constitution Day and Citizenship Day," the act mandates that all publicly funded educational institutions provide educational programming on the history of the American Constitution on that day. In May 2005, the United States Department of Education announced the enactment of this law and that it would apply to any school receiving federal funds of any kind. This holiday is not observed by granting time off work for federal employees.

When Constitution Day falls on a weekend or on another holiday, schools and other institutions unofficially observe the holiday on an adjacent weekday. This was the case in 2005, when Constitution Day was generally observed on Friday, September 16 and 2006 when the holiday was observed on Monday, September 18.

History

In 1939, William Randolph Hearst advocated, through his chain of daily newspapers, the creation of a holiday to celebrate citizenship. In 1940, Congress designated the third Sunday in May as I am an American Day.

In 1952, President Harry Truman signed a bill which proclaimed Citizenship Day to be September 17. Some Americans still observe this holiday. The bill's purpose was to recognize everyone who had become a United States citizen the previous year. It has since been expanded as a general celebration of citizenship.

See also

• Constitution Day (other countries)
• Holidays of the United States

External links

• http://www.reacheverychild.com/feature/constitution-resources.html Lesson plans, and free links
• Federal Register announcement
• Constitution Day resources for educators, federal employees, individuals, and parents
• National Archives
• National Constitution Center
• The text of 36 USC 106, describing Citizenship Day
• The text of H.R. 4818, adding Constitution Day and specifying educational requirements
• Celebrate Constitution Day

Online Lessons for K-12 Teachers to Use on Constitution Day

• Searchable, user-rated Constitution Day resources for educators
• Education World Constitution Day Lesson Planning - List of best web resources and links to online lessons
• K12 Online Constitution Day Lessons - Free web-based lessons for K-12 students