Constitution Day Initiative

Every year, Constitution Day marks the signing of the U.S. Constitution on September 17, 1787. Although Independence Day and Presidents’ Day were marked as such for many years, it was not until 1940 that the seeds of a Constitution Day were planted. “I am an American Day” was celebrated on the third Sunday of May and celebrated American citizenship. The holiday quickly gained popularity across the United States and the date was changed to September 17 during the 1950s to better reflect the origins of American citizenship. The name of the day also became the simpler “Citizenship Day.”

It was not until 2004 that Congress designated September 17 as Constitution Day alongside the existing Citizenship Day. This designation required all public schools and government offices to hold educational programming to promote constitutional literacy.

The Jack Miller Center honors this important date every year by funding educational lectures across the country. These lectures further the Center’s mission of civic literacy and encourage citizens to learn more about our country’s origins.

September 10, Claremont McKenna College: “‘Unalienable’ Rights at the American Founding” with Jud Campbell

September 15, Elon University: “The Declaration of Independence and the American Political Imagination” with Jack Miller Fellow Sarah Gustafson

September 15, Michigan State University: “Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration for Posterity” with Academic Council member Jeremy Bailey

September 15, The Ohio State University: “The Future of the Religion Clauses at the Supreme Court” with Stephanie Barclay

September 15, University of South Carolina: “I Too, Sing America: The Black Affirmation of American Independence” with JMC Board member Lucas Morel

September 16, Catholic University of America: “Freedom of Thought and the Struggle to End Slavery” with Jack Miller Fellow Keith Whittington

September 17, Azusa Pacific University: “Faith and Freedom: A Constitution Day Celebration of America’s Semiquincentennial” with Academic Council member Susan McWilliams Barndt, David Weeks, Abbylin Sellers, and Daniel Palm

September 17, Covenant College: “Reformation Legacies in the Constitution” with Jack Miller Fellows Nicholas P. Barden and Matthew Young

September 17, Emory University: “Native Nations and Assimilation in Jefferson’s Lost Constitution of 1804” with Academic Council member Jeremy Bailey

September 17, Miami Dade College: “Why the Constitution Protects Freedom of Speech” with Caroline Mala Corbin

September 17, Purdue University: Constitution Day Lecture with Richard Pildes

September 17, University of Maine: “Stop Calling America An Experiment” with Jack Miller Fellow Gregory Collins

September 17, University of Toledo: “The Constitution and the Crisis Presidency” with Board member Benjamin Kleinerman

September 17, University of West Florida: “Is There No Virtue Among Us? Interest, Ambition, and the Common Good in the Framers’ Constitutional Design” and “Federalists or Anti-Federalists: The Verdict After 250 Years” with Paul DeHart and James Hankins

September 17, University of West Georgia: “The Peaceful Transition of Power: George Washington and the Unwritten Constitution” with JMC scholar Craig Bruce Smith

September 17, Xavier University: “The Western End of the American Revolution” with Alan Taylor

September 17, York College CUNY: “America’s Conflicting Constitutional Visions: The Quest for Common Ground” with Rogers Smith

September 18, Lee University: 2026 Lee University Constitution Day Quiz Bowl

September 18, University of Houston: Constitution Day Lecture with Steven Skultety

September 21, Louisiana State University: “Native Nations, the Louisiana Purchase, and Jefferson’s Lost Constitution of 1804” with Academic Council member Jeremy Bailey

September 23, Assumption University: “The Making of the American Mind: The Story of our Declaration of Independence” with Matthew Spalding

September 24, Christopher Newport University: “Is the Constitution Color Blind?” with Academic Council member Joshua Dunn and Derek W. Black

October 2, Jacksonville State University: “How Best to Cultivate the Constitution in 2026? – Civic Centers or Not?” with Catherine Borck and Anthony Ives

• Select speakers adept at engaging diverse audiences, whether undergraduates, graduate students, members of the community, or fellow faculty.
• Consider topical issues to generate greater students and community interest.
• Involve student groups in planning and executing the event. Create a student advisory board to participate in selecting topics and speakers.
• Tie the Constitution Day event to the curriculum as much as possible. Require students to attend the event and write short reports connecting the event to their course. Invite speakers to a class meeting.
• Utilize all media circuits on campus with advertisements rather than depend on traditional posters and flyers. Ask the student newspaper to interview the speaker and report on the event.
• Extend personal invitations to colleagues and community leaders on and off campus.