No, Judge Judy is not a member of the U.S. Supreme Court

Judge Judy might have the persona of a hard-nosed judge on television, but she is not a member of the U.S. Supreme Court, despite what a striking number of American college graduates believe.

A new report found, for example, that one in every ten college grads thinks Judge Judith Sheindlin holds a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court.

That conclusion is based on a sampling of students from more than 1,100 liberal arts colleges across the United States.

The report suggests this erroneous belief is a symptom of a much larger problem: colleges are failing to properly educate students.

The survey also finds nearly 40 per cent of American college graduates don’t know the power to declare war rests with Congress, not the President.

The report also points to a Newseum study, suggesting a large number of Americans have absolutely no clue what rights they share between them.

When asked to name just one of their First Amendment rights, 33 per cent failed to name any and 43 per cent couldn’t even list the right to free speech.

The report lists a series of suggestions on how a wide range of stakeholders can take action to help address what it calls a “civic recession.”

You can view the full report here.