In 2004, Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV) sponsored legislation that designated September 17 as "Constitution Day." September 17 is the anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution in 1787. All educational institutions that receive federal funding are expected to observe Constitution Day in some way. Since 2005, when Constitution Day was first observed, Winthrop University has hosted speeches by prominent scholars such as Harold Jaffe of Claremont Colleges and Dr. Timothy Boylan of Winthrop University, and through special library displays commemorating some aspect of the Constitution.
Beginning in 2009, the West Forum assumed responsibility for Winthrop University's commemoration of Constitution Day. To view previous event information, please visit the Constitution Day Archive page.
On Sept. 15, 2022, at 11 a.m. in Dina’s Place, the John C. West Forum on Politics and Policy and the Department of Political Science hosted the non-partisan event, “The Dobbs Decision and the Changing Constitutional Right to Privacy,” featuring University of South Carolina Law Professor Thomas Crocker. A Constitutional scholar, Crocker shared the legal arguments used in the Dobbs case and how they differ from legal arguments used in previous privacy cases. This was a free cultural event.
