National Science Appreciation Day
2026
By The Governor Of The State Of North Carolina
A Proclamation
Whereas, on March 26, 1953, an American medical scientist, Dr. Jonas Salk, announced he had developed a vaccine against a devastating disease called polio; and
Whereas, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates the polio vaccine has prevented an estimated 20 million cases of paralysis and saved more than 1.5 million lives worldwide since 1988; and
Whereas, science has brought humanity vaccines, antibiotics, surgery, sanitation, increased agricultural yields, pasteurization, safe drinking water, cleaner air, and thousands of other interventions and processes that have doubled the human lifespan in little more than a century; and
Whereas, people globally and in North Carolina have experienced longer and healthier lives, greater convenience and comfort, and enhanced prosperity due to the benefits of science; and
Whereas, the State of North Carolina invites residents to show their appreciation for our many workers statewide in the fields of research, technology, science education, and medicine; and
Whereas, residents are encouraged to reflect on and share how scientific advances have bettered their lives and those of their loved ones;
Now, Therefore, I, Josh Stein, Governor of the State of North Carolina, do hereby proclaim March 26, 2026, as “National Science Appreciation Day” in North Carolina and commend its observance to all residents.
In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the Great Seal of the State of North Carolina at the Capitol in Raleigh this second day of March in the year of our Lord two thousand and twenty-sixth and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fiftieth.
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