NDP CELEBRATES CONSTITUTION DAY AT COUNTY COURTHOUSE

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September 13, 2024

For information on admission to Notre Dame Prep, please click here. 

Visit by NDP students marks an important date to commemorate the creation and signing of the supreme law of the land and to honor and celebrate the privileges and responsibilities of U.S. citizenship.

Today, Notre Dame Prep eighth graders spent some quality time with other area students and Founding Father "James Madison" in the Oakland County court system where they witnessed demonstrations and discussions — plus a "quiz bowl" session — during the culmination of Michigan Patriot Week and the celebration of Constitution Day.

The program, called "The Constitution: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow," was held in the Board of Commissioners auditorium located at the Oakland County Courthouse in Pontiac. It honored the anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution and featured Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Michael Warren and special guest attendee Michigan Supreme Court Justice Richard Bernstein who said, "This is what the law is truly about."

Students were especially surprised and delighted when American statesman, diplomat, Founding Father and fourth president of the United States James Madison showed up during the quiz bowl portion of the event. Madison was popularly acclaimed the "Father of the Constitution" for his pivotal role in drafting and promoting the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights.

“We are most pleased to host, engage and help educate more than 300 students in our founding First Principles, Declaration of Independence and the Constitution,” said Warren, co-founder of the activity and of Patriot Week, in a press release. “If we wish to remain a free people, it is vitally important that we all learn and celebrate what makes America the greatest nation in world history. Patriot Week and Constitution Day do exactly that.”

The Michigan Supreme Court (MSC) had issued a resolution marking September 11-17 as Michigan Patriot Week. Co-founded in 2009 by Warren and his daughter, Leah, Patriot Week takes place within the anchor dates of September 11 (anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks) and September 17 (Constitution Day). 

Inspired by Kwanzaa's model in which each day is dedicated to a specific principle, Patriot Week is a nonpartisan effort to unite Americans behind the founding First Principles articulated in the Declaration of Independence and embedded in the United States Constitution.

Constitution Day is a federal observance designed to commemorate the creation and signing of the supreme law of the land and to honor and celebrate the privileges and responsibilities of U.S. citizenship. Federal law requires that all schools receiving federal funds hold an educational program for their students on or near September 17 of each year. The MSC Learning Center annually coordinates Constitution Day events and resources, including tours, videos, an educator guide and more.

For additional information, visit www.patriotweek.org.

 

For information on admission to Notre Dame Prep, please click here.

Comments or questions? mkelly@ndpma.org

About Notre Dame Preparatory School
"At Notre Dame Prep, we inspire our students to become the best versions of themselves. We challenge them through an experience of academic excellence, focused on active, project-based learning. We invite them to explore a world of opportunities beyond the classroom. We guide them as they grow in spirituality within a community strong in its Catholic and Marist identity."

Notre Dame Preparatory School is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. Notre Dame Preparatory School's upper school enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame Prep's middle and lower schools enroll students in pre-kindergarten through grade eight. All three schools are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDP is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the National Association of Independent Schools. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School, visit the school’s home page at www.ndprep.org.