We the People...

Hey, do you know about the U.S.A.? Do you know about the government? Can you tell me about the Constitution?

Students, faculty and staff rocked the Academic Classroom Building with a lunch and lecture today in celebration of National Constitution Day. The day commemorates Sept. 17, 1787, when the U.S. Constitution was ratified.

Constitution Day became a federal holiday in 2004. The law requires that educational institutions receiving federal funding offer educational programs about the Constitution on Sept. 17 of each year to increase knowledge about citizenship and civics.

“I think it's important for our students to remember what our country stands for,” said Student Government Association President Calvin Bradley. "It's easy to get sidetracked by our daily studies."

Jennifer Bard, J.D., M.P.H., adjunct associate professor in the School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry, was this year’s guest speaker, discussing "The Constitutionality of Health Care Reform." Bard is also the Alvin R. Allison professor of law and director of the Health Law Program at Texas Tech.

Bard said this was her seventh time to visit TTUHSC on Constitution Day, and she looks forward to it each year.

"I think every one of us that lives in this country needs to know about the framework of our government, and they need to be understand it's accessible to them so that they can form their own opinions," Bard said. "My goal in these talks is to introduce people to the constitution so that they can be a part of the public conversation that effects everyone."

This annual event is sponsored by Student Services and the Student Government Association.