Publication
Date: May 2005 FRPart: |
Page Numbers: 29727-29728
"Constitution and Citizenship Day"
Posted on 05-25-2005
[Federal Register: May 24, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 99)]
[Notices]
[Page 29727]
[ From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr24my05-48]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Notice of Implementation of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day on September
17 of Each Year.
AGENCY: Office of Innovation and Improvement, Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of implementation of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.
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SUMMARY: The Assistant Deputy Secretary for Innovation and Improvement
announces that, pursuant to legislation passed by Congress, educational institutions
receiving Federal funding are required to hold an educational program pertaining
to the United States Constitution on September 17 of each year. This notice
implements this provision as it applies to educational institutions receiving
Federal funding from the Department.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alex Stein, U.S. Department of Education, 400
Maryland Avenue, SW., room 4W218, Washington, DC 20202- 5910. Telephone: (202)
895-9085 or via Internet: Alex.Stein@ed.gov.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call the
Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339. Individuals with disabilities
may obtain this document in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print,
audiotape, or computer diskette) on request to the contact person listed in
section.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice informs educational institutions receiving
Federal funds from the U.S. Department of Education (Department) of a new statutory
requirement for implementation of an educational program pertaining to the United
States Constitution, on a date designated by statute as Constitution Day and
Citizenship Day ("Constitution Day''). This Congressional initiative is
authorized by Section 111 of Division J of Pub. L. 108-447, the "Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2005,'' Dec. 8, 2004; 118 Stat. 2809, 3344-45 (Section 111).
The Assistant Deputy Secretary for Innovation and Improvement (Assistant Deputy
Secretary) takes this action in order to implement this provision as it applies
to educational institutions receiving Federal funding from the Department. Section
111(b) states "[e]ach educational institution that receives Federal funds
for a fiscal year shall hold an educational program on the United States Constitution
on September 17 of such year for the students served by the educational institution.''
For purposes of the Department's implementation of this requirement, "educational
institutions'' includes but is not limited to "local educational agencies''
and "institutions of higher education'' receiving Federal funding from
the Department. Section 111 applies to all educational institutions receiving
Federal funding, not only those receiving Federal funding from the Department.
However, the Department's authority only extends to those educational institutions
receiving funding from the Department, and consequently the Department can only
regulate with regard to those institutions. Section 111 requires that Constitution
Day be held on September 17 of each year, commemorating the September 17, 1787
signing of the Constitution. However, when September 17 falls on a Saturday,
Sunday, or holiday, Constitution Day shall be held during the preceding or following
week. Section 111 does not authorize funds to carry out this requirement, and
Section 111(d) indicates that this section shall apply "without fiscal
year limitation.'' Accordingly, the Assistant Deputy Secretary intends that
this notice pertain to this fiscal year and all subsequent years.
Some informational resources pertaining to the Constitution are listed below.
In addition to these, the Department is aware that there may be other public
and private resources available that may be helpful to educational institutions
in implementing Constitution Day. While the Department does not endorse any
particular program or Web site, this information is provided because it may
be of use to educational institutions developing their Constitution Day programs.
One of the Library of Congress' repositories for Constitutional documents and
information may be accessed at: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/bdsds/bdsdhome.html
.
The National Archives also has a Web site with a scan of the U.S. Constitution
available online at: http://www.archives.gov/national_archives_experience/charters/constitution.html:
In addition, the National Archives has a nationwide network of research facilities,
including presidential libraries that welcome students as young as 14 years
of age. Information about the facilities (by region and state) can be located
online at: http://www.archives.gov/facilities/index.html.
In addition to the resources mentioned above, it is our understanding that the
U.S. Office of Personnel Management will be making available to all Federal
agencies, information to help train and educate Federal employees on the Constitution
and, in particular, its relationship to the Oath of Office Federal employees
take. This information will be posted shortly on the OPM Web site, at: http://www.opm.gov/.
We expect that educational institutions may find this material useful in planning
their Constitution Day activities. Electronic Access to This Document: You may
view this document, as well as all other Department of Education documents published
in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on
the Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.
To use PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at this
site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S. Government Printing
Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in the Washington, DC, area at
(202) 512-1530.
Note: The official version of this document is the document published in the
Federal Register. Free Internet access to the official edition of the Federal
Register and the Code of Federal Regulations is available on GPO Access at:
http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html
.
Dated: May 19, 2005. Nina Shokraii Rees, Assistant Deputy Secretary for Innovation
and Improvement.
[FR Doc. 05-10355 Filed 5-23-05; 8:45 am]
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