The First Freedom Student Competition is a first-semester national essay and video contest. It offers high-school students an opportunity to compete for $2,500 awards as they examine the history and current-day relevance of religious freedom, and then, by written essay or video production, present their evaluation. The competition is open to students in the United States and U.S. territories, and to American schools and American home-schooled students worldwide. We invite 9th — 12th grade students at all levels of academic placement to participate.

The First Freedom Student Competition is a first-semester national essay and video contest. It offers high-school students an opportunity to compete for $2,500 awards as they examine the history and current-day relevance of religious freedom, and then, by written essay or video production, present their evaluation. The competition is open to students in the United States and U.S. territories, and to American schools and American home-schooled students worldwide. We invite 9th — 12th grade students at all levels of academic placement to participate.

The right to religious freedom is set forth in constitutional and international human-rights law. Today’s youth play an important role in upholding and strengthening this liberty; therefore, the First Freedom Student Competition has been developed to:

• Help high-school students better understand religious freedom — its history and current significance;
• Encourage high-school students to explore their individual and civic rights to and responsibilities for religious freedom;
• Engage high-school teachers and students in the study of American history and the First Amendment; and
• Challenge high-school students to strengthen their analytic writing and media skills.

This school year’s competition has closed.  Winners will be announced on April 13, 2015, Thomas Jefferson’s birthday.