Constitution Day (United States)

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It has been suggested that Citizenship Day be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)

Constitution 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.

[edit] Who really came up with the idea?

In a leejay middle school, an eighth grade history teacher claims that he came up with the idea, claiming that a few years ago he and one of his classes discussed why the Declaration of Independence got its own day, while the most important U.S. document didn't have a holiday. The teacher and his class sent an e-mail to the president suggesting it. Whether he was the original source or not, that middle school History teacher now boasts that he invented a holiday.