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  1. Vincent Phillip Muñoz: Faith and Free Speech

    August 17, 2026

    America's constitutional founding established religious liberty as a foundational natural right, shaping how the nation balances faith, law, and government power. Today, those same foundational principles face new challenges as student self-censorship threatens free expression on college campuses. Addressing these issues requires applying original First Amendment principles to protect robust, uninhibited debate in modern higher education, as emphasized by CCCG Director Vincent Phillip Muñoz.

  2. Colleges to mark Sept. 11 anniversary for students born after attacks

    August 11, 2026

    As colleges nationwide prepare to mark the 25th anniversary of September 11 for a student generation born after the attacks, higher education institutions are launching remembrance events to preserve the legacy of that day. At the University of Notre Dame, the Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government is hosting its annual Jeanie Poole O'Shaughnessy Memorial Lecture, featuring Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and other key leaders reflecting on 9/11's enduring impact. Beyond the lecture, the Center is also collecting "Remembrance Recollections" from participants to honor the victims and capture personal memories of the historic tragedy.

  3. The Professor Pipeline: Legendary Teachers Continue to Inspire the Next Generation of Catholic Academics

    August 07, 2026

    Generational mentorship among Catholic scholars plays a vital role in inspiring students to pursue academic vocations and carry forward a rich intellectual tradition. Mentees absorb not only deep intellectual rigor but also practical classroom methods, such as Notre Dame law professor Sherif Girgis, an affiliate of the CCCG, who adopted Princeton professor Robert George’s dynamic, note-free teaching style and courageous, joyful defense of faith and reason. By building strong personal relationships and modeling academic work as a true calling rather than just a job, legendary professors create a lasting pipeline of scholars dedicated to pursuing and sharing the truth.

  4. NEH Announces $41.4 Million for 81 Humanities Projects

    July 22, 2026

    The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has announced $41.4 million in grants for 81 humanities projects across the nation. As part of this funding, the Center for Citizenship & Constitutional Government (CCCG) at the University of Notre Dame received an Endowments for Advancing the Humanities award to help establish a 20-year term endowment. This funding will support graduate and postdoctoral fellowships, visiting scholars, and faculty scholarship focused on American constitutionalism and civic education.

  5. Analysis: Supreme Court strikes down some Trump priorities, but expands presidential power

    July 08, 2026

    In a recent analysis for OSV News exploring the Supreme Court’s decisions on presidential power and executive limits, CCCG Faculty Affiliate Rick Garnett examined the court's crucial institutional role. Challenging the narrative that the justices are merely political actors, Garnett emphasized that the court operates as the country's best-functioning branch of national government by sticking to legal consensus and established precedent. His insights help clarify the legal realities behind the high-profile rulings shaping the limits of executive authority.

  6. Notre Dame Law Professors Offer Insight on Supreme Court Rulings

    July 02, 2026

    CCCG faculty affiliate Rick Garnett of Notre Dame Law School recently joined national media outlets to provide expert analysis on the Supreme Court's landmark term. Professor Garnett offered crucial insights into the Court's recent religious liberty decisions, including Landor v. Louisiana Department of Corrections.

  7. Catholic scholars reflect on the American experiment

    June 24, 2026

    The University of Notre Dame’s Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government (CCCG) recently co-hosted a major conference at The Catholic University of America (CUA) titled “Endowed by Their Creator: Catholicism, the Declaration of Independence, and the American Experiment at 250.” Co-sponsored alongside CUA's Center for the Constitution and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition and the Carroll Forum for Citizenship and Public Life, the symposium brought together prominent Catholic academics, jurists, and public intellectuals to examine the historical intersection and contemporary tensions between Catholic social thought and American constitutional democracy. The event featured a video address by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, alongside panel discussions with noted scholars including Russell Hittinger, Kenneth Grasso, Ryan T. Anderson, and Sarah Gustafson. 

  8. Supreme Court denies Rastafarian's lawsuit after he was forcibly shaved bald behind bars

    June 23, 2026

    Following a 6-3 Supreme Court decision denying a Rastafarian inmate the ability to sue individual prison employees for damages over a forced haircut, legal experts are analyzing the ruling's broader impact on religious liberties. Constitutional law expert Rick Garnett, an affiliated scholar with the Notre Dame Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government, notes that while the decision clarifies the limits of federal spending powers over state prisons, it places a heavier responsibility on individual states to safeguard prisoners' religious freedom.

  9. Justice Thomas’ Wisdom

    June 23, 2026

    Robert B. Charles revisits the profound insights of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas on how our founding documents weather every national storm. Originally delivered as the "Tocqueville" lecture at the Notre Dame Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government, Thomas’s remarks reflect on his own journey of overcoming cynicism to reclaim his faith, while emphasizing American exceptionalism, natural law, and his guiding daily prayer, the Litany of Humility.

  10. Harvard's solution won't stop runaway A's. This could.

    May 25, 2026

    CCCG Director Vincent Phillip Muñoz weighed in on Harvard’s attempt to curb runaway grade inflation, calling the university's internal policy a weak, "A-minus" effort that fails to solve the underlying issue. He argued that restoring academic integrity across higher education requires structural transparency, proposing that universities should instead display the overall class grade average on student transcripts alongside individual marks to give true meaning back to top grades. 

  11. Notre Dame considers grade inflation as other institutions come under fire

    May 14, 2026

    As Notre Dame begins exploring options to address decades of rising grade inflation, Constitutional Studies Director Vincent Phillip Muñoz warned that standardizing top marks makes it difficult to recognize truly extraordinary student work. To combat this trend, Muñoz has proposed a system utilizing "grade distinction points" alongside GPAs to incentivize high-performing students and encourage academic rigor among faculty. 

  12. Secretary of State Marco Rubio: The Catholic Roots of America

    May 12, 2026

    Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered a virtual address on April 9 during the conference, “Endowed by Their Creator: Catholicism, the Declaration of Independence, and the American Experiment at 250.”

    Organized by the Center for the Constitution and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition (CIT) at The Catholic University of America, together with the University of Notre Dame’s Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government, and Catholic University’s Carroll Forum for Citizenship and Public Life, the symposium celebrated the nation’s semiquincentennial.

  13. The Justices' 2026 Events, Appearances and Interviews, With Links to Videos When Recorded

    May 06, 2026

    Justice Kavanaugh participates in an event cosponsored by Notre Dame’s Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government and the Catholic University of America’s Center for the Constitution and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition and Carroll Forum for Citizenship and Public Life at CUA in D.C.

  14. Civitas Symposium on Justice Thomas and the Declaration of Independence

    May 01, 2026

    Justice Clarence Thomas' recent lecture commemorating the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence continues to attract attention and comment. While some on the left found the speech objectionable or offensive, many on the right have found it to be inspiring and worth engaging.

    Civitas Outlook has published a symposium of responses to Justice Thomas' lecture with many worthwhile contributions, including Professor Phillip Muñoz.

  15. Catholic scholars reflect on the American experiment at 250

    April 14, 2026

    “Endowed by Their Creator: Catholicism, the Declaration of Independence, and the American Experiment at 250” was the subject of a conference this month at The Catholic University of America (CUA) featuring a bevy of Catholic academics, jurists, and public intellectuals. Co-hosted by Notre Dame's Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government, along with CUA's Center for the Constitution and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition and Carroll Forum for Citizenship and Public Life, the conference included a video address by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio highlighting Catholics' presence and influence on the nation.

  16. Secretary Rubio says Catholicism helped build America and remains vital to its future at CUA conference

    April 11, 2026

    Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered a virtual address to an April 9th symposium in Washington, D.C. co-sponsored by Notre Dame's Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government and Catholic University of America's Center for the Constitution and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition. In his remarks, Secretary Rubio argued that Catholicism is not a late addition or outlier in the American story, but one of its deepest civilizational roots – and one that will remain essential as the nation approaches its 250th anniversary.

  17. Conference at Catholic University Explores Catholic Connections to Declaration of Independence

    April 09, 2026

    A conference April 9 at Catholic University explored the connections between Catholic intellectual thought and the Declaration of Independence as part of CUA’s celebration of the 150th anniversary of the signing of America’s founding document.

    The conference was cosponsored by The Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government at the University of Notre Dame, CUA’s Center for the Constitution and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition, and CUA’s Carroll Forum for Citizenship and Public Life and was hosted by the Columbus School of Law.

  18. Lecture Series Explores Natural Rights, America’s Founding

    March 25, 2026

    The Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government (CCCG) hosted its second installation of the True Lectures from March 18–20. This year’s series featured Jud Campbell, Professor of Law and Helen L. Crocker Faculty Scholar at Stanford Law School. Campbell’s lectures dove into the history and legacy of natural rights in the U.S., from the founding to today.

  19. Church and State: Faith in the American experiment persists, despite widespread anti-Catholic bias among those who enshrined freedom of religion.

    March 20, 2026

    Richard Garnett, Paul J. Schierl Professor of Law and director of the Program on Church, State & Society at Notre Dame Law School, writes on why despite problematic widespread anti-Catholic sentiment, we should have faith in the American experiment.

  20. All That is Sacred Must Be Profaned

    February 25, 2026

    CCCG Visiting Fellow Carl Trueman reflects on the theological roots of modern identity in a recent lecture. Discussing his upcoming book, The Desecration of Man, Dr. Trueman explores how the rejection of the sacred leads to a "desecration" of human dignity and anthropology. He argues that the recovery of virtue ethics and the practices of the Church are essential to reclaiming a proper understanding of what it means to be human in a technological age.