Arizona celebrates inaugural Sandra Day O'Connor Civics Celebration Day
PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) -- Thirty-nine years ago on September 25, 1981, Arizona's Sandra Day O'Connor was sworn in as the first female Supreme Court Justice.
In honor of this momentous day not only in United States history but also in Arizona history, Arizona has marked today, September 25 as the inaugural Sandra Day O'Connor Civics Celebration Day.
"[It's] a day in which a majority of the classroom instruction is devoted to civics," Governor Doug Ducey said in a tweet.
The idea of this day is not only to celebrate Sandra Day O'Connor and her legacy but also to bring back civics to classrooms. Civics is the study of government and politics and bringing that back into school curriculum is important for the future of elections and to understand how the country operates.
"For too long, civics curriculum has disappeared from schools. Our democracy requires an engaged and informed citizenry. We need a swift intervention — which begins with the family and is solidified in the classroom," Ducey said.
Ducey signed a bill in March 2020 called the Civics Celebrations Day bill which requires schools to teach civics in classrooms from kindergarten through high school across the state.
In a press release issued in January 2020, he noted his plans to make September 25 the day he planned to dedicate the bill to - the day Sandra Day O'Connor became a Supreme Court Justice.
"We are blessed to have one Arizonan who’s the ideal of this aspirational creed. Her life is a living civics lesson-- and Arizona is fortunate to be home to the Institute that bears her name. I’m talking about Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Who better to hold as a model for the next generation?" Ducey said in a press release.
