Goshen College to celebrate Constitution Day with campus-wide reading

"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity ... "

What do these words written in 1787 mean to us today?

WHAT:
To celebrate Constitution Day 2008, Goshen College theater students will present a public reading of the entire United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

WHEN:
Wednesday, Sept. 17 at 10:30 a.m.

WHERE:
The Umble Center balcony lawn

WHO:
Students, faculty and staff will gather to hear this important piece of the United States' identity read aloud. The college's Theater Department and History Department are jointly organizing the event as a catalyst for discussion about a document that too few people have read.

WHY IT'S NEWS:
On Sept. 17, 1787, 39 of the 55 delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the United States Constitution. The Congress, by joint resolution, has designated Sept. 17 as Citizenship Day and the week of Sept. 17-23 each year as Constitution Week. This celebration is the fulfillment of a federal mandate for colleges and universities receiving federal aid to hold an educational program on the U.S. Constitution on Sept. 17.

Contact: News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler, (574) 535-7572, jodihb@goshen.edu

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college's Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron's Best Buys in Education, "Colleges of Distinction," "Making a Difference College Guide" and U.S. News & World Report's "America's Best Colleges" edition, which named Goshen a "least debt college." Visit www.goshen.edu.