Valdosta State University will observe Constitution Week Sept. 17-23 with a series of special events presented by Odum Library and the Department of Political Science in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.

All of the events are free of charge and open to the public.

Keynote Address: “Law Today, Law Tomorrow, and the Law Every Day”

Judge Jeremy Baker will deliver the Constitution Week keynote address — “Law Today, Law Tomorrow, and the Law Every Day” — from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 19, in the Odum Library Auditorium.

Baker was sworn in as judge of the Municipal Court of Valdosta in April 2021. He is a Valdosta native and a VSU alumnus who earned a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Religious Studies and a Minor in Political Science in 2007. He was admitted to the State Bar of Georgia in 2011 and previously served as senior district attorney for the Southern Judicial Circuit and as an associate attorney for Coleman Talley LLP.

Constitution Read Aloud and Voter Registration

Campus and community volunteers will read the Constitution from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 20, in the Odum Library Auditorium. Guests will have an opportunity to take home a pocket-sized version of this important document, while supplies last.

The VSU Student Government Association, American Association of University Women, and other campus organizations will host voter registration drives. The last day to register to vote in the upcoming General Election / Special Election in Georgia is Oct. 11. Election Day is Nov. 8.

Faculty Roundtable: “The Overruling of Roe v. Wade”

The Department of Political Science will host a roundtable discussion — “Roe v. Wade: What Happens Next and What Does That Mean to Me” — from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 21, in the Odum Library Auditorium. This roundtable discussion will feature faculty from VSU’s Department of History, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Department of Political Science, and Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice.

Student Roundtable: “Our Republic Must Endure”

The Department of Political Science will host a student-led roundtable conversation — “Our Republic Must Endure: What Voters Should Know About the New Georgia Election Law” — from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 22, in the Odum Library Auditorium.

The Constitution of the United States established America's national government and fundamental laws and guaranteed certain basic rights for its citizens. It was signed on Sept. 17, 1787, by delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. It was ratified by the necessary nine states the following year.

The U.S. Constitution may be read online at the National Archives website at https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution-transcript. An interactive Constitution is available at https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution courtesy of the National Constitution Center.