Section 49-6-1014 - Celebrate Freedom Week(a)(1) As used in this section, "Constitution Day" means a federal observance that recognizes the adoption of the United States Constitution and those who have become United States citizens that is normally observed on September 17, the day in 1787 that delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the document in Philadelphia, unless the day falls on a weekend or on another holiday, in which schools observe the holiday during the week of classes in which the seventeenth day of such month falls.(2) For purposes of subdivision (a)(1), Sunday shall be considered the first day of the week.(b) To educate students in grades kindergarten through twelve (K-12) about the sacrifices made for freedom in the founding of this country and the values upon which this country was founded, the week of September 17, 2018, and annually thereafter, is designated as Celebrate Freedom Week to honor Constitution Day in all public schools.(c) The department of education shall promote Celebrate Freedom Week.(d) During Celebrate Freedom Week, all students in grades kindergarten through twelve (K-12) shall receive instruction on Celebrate Freedom Week topics, including the resources and materials in subsection (f) to be determined by each school.(e) Each topic of Celebrate Freedom Week shall be taught in compliance with § 49-6-1011.(f) No later than December 31, 2017, the department of education shall provide each LEA with a variety of age and grade appropriate internet resources and materials for instructional use for Celebrate Freedom Week. The resources and materials shall be provided to aid educators and curriculum coordinators in creating programs and lesson plans for Celebrate Freedom Week. The department and LEA shall post information about Constitution Day and Celebrate Freedom Week, as well as the recommended resources and materials on their respective websites.(g) Schools are encouraged to: (1) Create materials and resources for the week in accordance with this section;(2) Study the meaning and importance of the Declaration of Independence and the United States constitution with an emphasis on the preamble and the bill of rights; and(3) Provide for the study of the Declaration of Independence to include study of the relationship between ideas expressed in that document and subsequent American history, including: (A) The rich diversity of American people as a nation of immigrants;(B) The American revolution;(C) The formulation of the United States constitution; and(D) The abolitionist movement, including the emancipation proclamation and the women's suffrage movement.(h) During Celebrate Freedom Week, all students are encouraged to study and recite the following language from the Declaration of Independence that sum up the American philosophy of freedom: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.
Acts 2005, ch. 202, § 1; 2011 , ch. 251, §§ 1, 2.