AU's 2026 Student Contest is Now Open

High school and college students are invited to submit an essay and/or video to AU’s annual scholarship contest by October 5, 2026, for a chance to win up to $1,500 and be published by Americans United.

This Year’s Theme: Church-State Separation at America’s 250th

Background: At Americans United for Separation of Church and State, we fight every day for the aspirational founding values of our nation’s Declaration of Independence: that we are all equal and endowed with unalienable rights, including religious freedom. As America marks its 250th anniversary this year, we recognize that these are ideals our country has yet to live up to but that Americans have been fighting for centuries to achieve. If America is to thrive for another 250 years, we must continue to fight for equality, freedom, and the separation of church and state.

This year’s essay content and video contest have different prompts; students are welcome to participate in either one or both contests.

Essay Prompt: From the Declaration of Independence to the signing of the Constitution, why did the Founders work to protect religious freedom and the separation of church and state? Why is the fight for religious freedom and the separation of church and state still relevant today, and why is this issue important to you?

Video Prompt: Some people claim that America was founded as a Christian nation and that the separation of church and state is not in the Constitution. Debunk this myth and share briefly why you think the separation of church and state is important to our democracy.

Tips for your submission:

Winning submissions must respond to all elements of the prompt.
Your submission can reference current events, legal cases, U.S. history, primary sources, personal experience, and other sources.
You are encouraged but not required to incorporate personal experience as an advocate or personal perspective on how your own experiences inform your commitment to the separation of church and state.
Creativity is encouraged! Winning submissions will have a unique and compelling voice or perspective.

Who Can Participate

The contest is open to high school students and undergraduate students attending any 2- or 4-year college or university (including trade & technical schools). Students must live in the United States, including the fifty states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories. Employees and board members of Americans United, and members of their immediate families, are not eligible to participate.

Participants may submit one essay and/or one video. Students submitting in both contests are eligible to win in both as well.

Criteria

Submissions will be judged on adherence to the topic above; strength of arguments and examples; strength of voice and perspective; and quality of writing or video. Submissions must meet the criteria below and be received by 11:59 PM PT on Monday, October 5.

Note: All work must be your own. Using AI to write or produce your submission is not permitted and will result in disqualification. All submissions are reviewed for AI use.

Essays:

Essay length should be between 750 and 1,000 words.
Writing should be clear, creative, and proofread; demonstrate genuine engagement with the topic; and be the student’s original writing.
Students should fact-check their writing and must include citations in their essay. Any form of citation or footnote is accepted.

Videos:

The content should be clear, creative, demonstrate genuine engagement with the topic, and be the student’s original work.
The style or format of the video content is up to you! Videos can be as simple as talking into the camera, can riff on a TikTok trend, or be more elaborate such as animated, documentary-style, fictional narrative, recording of performances such as music or poetry, or something else. Faster pacing is better – think of what videos keep your attention when scrolling
Length must be between 1-2 minutes.
Video should be formatted in portrait.
Sources that you use must be cited in the page provided in the submission form. Any form of citation is accepted.
Videos can be made on any video software and should be uploaded in the submission as a video file or sent as a link;
- For example, videos can be made in Canva, CapCut, or other video software
- TikTok-generated videos should be downloaded and shared as files.
- YouTube videos must be set as unlisted, audience set as “Not Made for Kids.” Music for YouTube must be public domain or it will be automatically removed from YouTube during their upload/review process.
- Videos can also be sent via Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive links. If submitting via Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive, make sure your sharing settings allow “Anyone with the link” to view.

Prizes

First Place

$1,500 for high school essay winner
$1,500 for high school video winner
$1,500 for college essay winner
$1,500 for college video winner

Second Place

$1,000 for high school essay winner
$1,000 for high school video winner
$1,000 for college essay winner
$1,000 for college video winner

Third Place

$500 for high school essay winner
$500 for high school video winner
$500 for college essay winner
$500 for college video winner

Note that this is a scholarship opportunity for current students but the prize money does not need to be spent on academic expenses.

In addition, the first place essays will be printed in Church and State magazine and all the winning essays will be published on AU’s website. The first place videos will be played at the Summit for Religious Freedom and all the winning videos will be published on AU’s digital media channels including but not limited to the website, YouTube, and TikTok.