September 17th is Constitution Day! On September 17, 1787, the 55 delegates to the Constitutional Convention held their final meeting. Only one item of business occupied the agenda that day: to sign the Constitution of the United States of America.
Eleven years ago, Congress established September 17th as a federal holiday to recognize the signing of the United States Constitution in 1787.
The ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties celebrates the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights every day, but is especially pleased to place focus on these essential foundational documents of our democracy on Constitution Day.
For Teachers and Educators
The ACLU, in conjunction with attorneys from public and private sectors, invites educators to participate in our "Celebrate the Constitution" program on Thursday
, September 17th .
Hundreds of San Diego and Imperial attorneys will be volunteering on that day (and throughout the week and even beyond) to
engage students in a rich, interactive, multimedia dialogue on constitutional principles and interpretation, and on American law, from both historical and contemporary perspectives.
The session can run in any block of time to meet your school's schedule -anywhere from 20 minutes to a full block period. The volunteer attorneys can make several presentations at your school on that day or speak to assemblies if that better meets your school's needs. Also, attorneys
can present to classes on other days in the vicinity of Sept. 17 , to accommodate block schedules or competing programs.
We provide a
nonpartisan pamphlet on the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and on contemporary court interpretations of our rights and laws, with special emphasis on cases that engage and appeal to middle and high school students. A PowerPoint presentation is also available. Teachers are provided with a detailed document addressing the history and social science content standards that are met with this presentation.
Demand increases every year. This will be our 9th year coordinating speakers! Last year, attorneys from the offices of the
U.S. Attorney, District Attorney, Public Defender, Federal Defender, and private law firms, including 2014 sponsors
Cooley LLP, DLA Piper, Fish & Richardson,
McKenna Long & Aldridge Foundation and
Sheppard Mullin, and attorneys from the city's largest firms, including
Jones Day, Morrison & Foerster, Procopio Cory, and
Solomon Ward presented in more than
500 classrooms to more than 17,500 students!
Schedule a speaker for your classroom or school while they are still available! Send us an email with your contact info!
We offer this program to help you provide mandatory instruction on the Constitution on September 17th. Congress mandated that all publicly-funded educational institutions must provide educational programming on the history of the American Constitution on that day. The United States Department of Education declared that
any school that receives federal funding of any kind must conduct lessons on the Constitution on that day.
To guarantee that we will be able to match an attorney to your school's schedule, please
request a speaker by Friday, August 28th. We typically, however, have been able to accommodate requests submitted before the last Friday in August.
To learn more or to
schedule a speaker for your classroom or school while they are still available,
For Attorneys
If you are an attorney and would like to
volunteer your services,
please contact us today ! Just provide us with your name, mailing address, daytime phone and email so we can be in touch with you. Also, if you have any date or geographic constraints that would help us in the scheduling, please let us know that too.
We offer an optional speaker training session to review Con Law and interesting cases that will help engage the students in the interactive dialogue we are all seeking. We have lots of background material on the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and landmark Supreme Court cases, but all attorneys are welcome to develop their own curriculum--as long as it is nonpartisan and will get the kids talking and thinking!
For Parents
If you are a parent and would like to know more about the program or would like us to contact a school or teacher,
please email us or call 619.232.2121, ext. 260.
Constitution Day Council
A distinguished panel comprising judges, law firm partners and community leaders advises and supports the ACLU's Constitution Day activities. If your firm would like to participate on this level,
please email us or call 619.232.2121, ext. 260.
Constitution Day Council:
The Honorable H. Lee Sarokin, Retired, U.S. Court of Appeals, 3rd District,
Constitution Day Council Chair
The Honorable James Stiven, Retired, U.S. District Court, Southern District of California,
Program Chair
Founding Members
Mark Danis,
Morrison & Foerster LLP
Eric Isaacson,
Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP
Anthony Stiegler,
Cooley LLP
and
Past Presidents of the San Diego County Bar Association:
- Candace Carroll,
Sullivan Hill Lewin Rez & Engel
- Todd Stevens,
List of Participating Legal Organizations
American Bar Association Immigration Justice Project
Andersen Mann Hilbert & Parker
Office of the Attorney General - California
California Western School of Law
Office of the San Diego District Attorney
Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc.
Morgan Foley, City Attorney, City of El Cajon
Law Office of Adam Van Susteren
Law Office of Jennifer L. Coon
Law Office of Jonathan L. Willis
Law Office of Lilia S. Velasquez
Law Office of Rebecca P. Jones
Law Office of Stephen D. Lemish
Legal Aid Society of San Diego
McDougal Love Eckis Boehmer Foley & Lough
Multiple Conflicts Office of San Diego County
Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman
Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch
Office of the San Diego City Attorney
San Diego La Raza Lawyers Association
Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton
Solomon Ward Seidenwurm & Smith
Sullivan Hill Lewin Rez & Engel
Thomas Jefferson School of Law
Office of the United States Attorney, Southern District of California
and