Indiana University celebrating Constitution Day with variety of activities
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Lectures, panel discussions and games will highlight Indiana University’s celebration of Constitution Day, a national observance of the anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution that focuses on educational activities in schools and universities. While the official celebration of Constitution Day is next Tuesday, Sept. 17, IU events will get under way this week and continue through next week.
IU Bloomington
- Beth Cate and Andrea Need, faculty members at the School of Public and Environmental Affairs, will lead a discussion of voting rights, affirmative action, same-sex marriage and privacy in a forum on “Unsettled Law: The Issues Left Open by the Major Supreme Court Cases and What Happens Next.” It takes place noon to 1 p.m. Friday, Sept. 13, in SPEA room 169.
- The IU Maurer School of Law will present a lecture by H. Jefferson Powell, professor of law at the Duke Law School, on “War Powers under the Constitution and the Question of Syria,” at noon Tuesday, Sept. 17, in the Moot Court Room of the law school. Powell returned to Duke in 2012 after a two-year stint as deputy assistant attorney general in the Office of Legal Counsel of the U.S. Department of Justice. He is the author of the forthcoming book “The Constitution and the Commander in Chief.”
- IU Bloomington Libraries will host a Constitution Day display in the Wells Library Lobby. On Tuesday, library staff will distribute free copies of the Constitution, answer questions about using library resources to locate scholarship related to the Constitution and offer interactive activities for students, including the Preamble Scramble.
Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis
- Former U.S. Reps. Steve Kuykendall, R-Calif., and Nick Lampson, D-Texas, will take part in a Constitution Week Open Forum from 3 to 4 p.m. Monday, Sept. 16, at the IUPUI Democracy Plaza (rain location is IUPUI Campus Center). Sponsored by the Center for Service and Learning, the forum is part of the Congress to Campus program of the U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress.
- Additional activities include: a panel discussion on public service, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Monday in CE405; Constitution Week games, 3 to 4 p.m. Tuesday at Democracy Plaza; a voter registration drive, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Campus Center; and “Constitution Week Jeopardy,” 1 to 3 p.m. Thursday at the Campus Center food court.
IU East
- The campus will present a series of activities on the theme “Can You Hear Me: Voices from the Electorate.” They include: an informal discussion at 10 a.m. Tuesday in the Campus Library; “What’s Your Issue” tables over the lunch hour in Graf Center on Tuesday and Whitewater Hall on Wednesday; and an “expression wall” all week in Graf Center. Sponsors are the Office of Campus Life, Student Government Association, School of Humanities and Social Sciences and American Democracy Project.
IU Northwest
- IU Northwest will present discussions Tuesday, Sept. 17, at 11:45 a.m. and 7 p.m. on "The Post-Obama Constitution: Views on the Affordable Care Act." Both sessions will take place in the Bruce W. Bergland Auditorium in the Savannah Center and are open to the public. Panelists for the mid-day discussion will include Marie Eisenstein, associate professor of political science; Jean Poulard, professor of political science; and Todd McNeeley, fine arts student. Panelists for the evening discussion will include Susan Zinner and Samuel Flint, associate professors of public affairs; and State Rep. Charlie Brown, D-Gary. Sponsors are the Office of Student Activities, the Center for Urban and Regional Excellence and the Student Government Association.
IU Southeast
- “Drone Warfare: Legal, Ethical, and Strategic Issues” will take place 7:30 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 19, on the third floor of the IU Southeast Library. Sponsored by the Common Experience and the IU Southeast Civil Liberties Union, the panel discussion will include IUS political science professor Cliff Staten. Also, the campus produces an informational brochure about the Constitution and will distribute it on Sept. 17.
About Constitution Day
Constitution Day became a national observance in 2004, when Congress approved legislation calling on citizens to commemorate the signing of the Constitution and learn more about the founding document. Educational institutions that receive federal funding are expected to hold an educational program pertaining to the Constitution.
Duke law professor H. Jefferson Powell will speak Tuesday, Sept. 17, at the IU Maurer School of Law.
