FIRE's Freedom in Academia Essay Contest

Exciting changes are in store for FIRE's 2012 Essay Contest! The scholarship prizes will be bigger, the contest will feature brand-new FIRE videos, and both juniors and seniors in high school will be eligible to apply. Students will now have the chance to win a $10,000 scholarship award, along with smaller prizes of $5,000, $1,000, and $500. 

FIRE will be accepting entries starting August 1. To sign up for a notification email, click here.


2011 Awards

One first place winner will be awarded a $5,000 college scholarship.

One second place winner will receive a $2,500 college scholarship.

Five runners-up will each receive a $1000 college scholarship.

Deadlines

Deadline is November 5, 2011. Winners will be announced by December 16, 2011.

FIRE's Mission

FIRE's mission is to defend and sustain individual rights at America's colleges and universities. These rights include freedom of speech, legal equality, due process, religious liberty, and sanctity of conscience—the essential qualities of individual liberty and dignity. FIRE's core mission is to protect the unprotected and to educate the public and communities of concerned Americans about the threats to these rights on our campuses and about the means to preserve them.

Instructions

  1. Go to FIRE's website at www.thefire.org and familiarize yourself with FIRE and FIRE's issues.
  2. Watch two short videos about real students who were censored and punished for speech that is protected by the U.S. Constitution.


    Students should also watch some of FIRE's other videos, read FIRE's mission, and browse posts on The Torch to get a good sense of FIRE's goals and activities.
  3. Answer the Essay Question: Why is free speech important at our nation's colleges and universities? Using examples from both videos, discuss how these universities violated the featured students' rights and why these violations are incompatible with higher education. Your essay should be 800-1000 words.
  4. Submit your essay through the online form below. Only current high school seniors graduating in the spring of 2012 may apply.