We The Future College Scholarship

$2,000 – $5,000 Scholarships Available

Teachers: Receive a $50 Amazon gift card when at least 10 of your students submit a contest entry!

The teacher with the most entries will receive $1,000! See teacher category for details.

COLLEGE CATEGORY (AGES 17-24; 12 HOURS OR MORE)

Contest Rules Summary – 2024

Sign up for the contest online.

IMPORTANT: Submissions must be entirely the original work of the students, without any assistance of artificial intelligence (AI). Entries will be analyzed by third party software.

College Students may submit: Essay, Song, STEM, Short Film, Social Media Video, or PSA. All entries that utilize copyrighted music, film clips, or photos MUST obtain the proper licensing permissions IN ADVANCE of submitting the entry, in order to be considered.

The winner will also be invited to attend the Winner Mentor Trip tentatively scheduled for September 2025 (all costs fully covered).

Submissions due no later than 11:59 p.m. May 31, 2024 submitted electronically through the online portal on this site.  See Official Rules Section III for complete submission instructions.

Essay:

Please choose from the following prompts.

Option 1: Write a 500-700 word essay on the different powers vested in our three branches of government and why checks and balances, as guaranteed by our Constitution, is vital to the preservation of our government. Are there examples (recent or historical) of violations of these checks and balances?

Option 2: Recognizing our form of government is a Republic, write a 500-700 word essay on how our First Amendment (RAPPS: Religion, Assembly, Press, Petition, Speech) rights enable the citizens to influence the laws of our country or initiate a constitutional amendment and, in so doing, prevent the dissolution of the Republic in the ways that have affected other nations in the past (e.g. violent rebellion/uprising or coup d’etat).” Essay entry may be mailed or submitted electronically, but MUST include student’s name, age, and grade on every page of the essay. If mailing, the essay and entry form must be included. See Official Rules Section III for details.

Song:

Please choose from one of the following prompts below.

• The Relevancy of the U.S. Constitution. This could include:
  • The significance and necessity of the U.S. Constitution, highlighting how it has protected our freedom throughout our history and why we need it in the future.
  • What the Constitution Means to Me.
  • Religious Freedom.

The song must be an original pop, country, rock, or other popular genre song composition with lyrics and music written by the student, no longer than 3:20. Song submissions should be uploaded to YouTube (640 x 360 minimum, HD preferred) or Vimeo (download enabled) and must include a video recording of the performance or a still photo with audio in the background. The song title must be in the title of the uploaded video and the song lyrics must be in the description of the video. See Official Rules Section III for details.

STEM:

Pick 1 of the following 4 STEM projects. If your project is a website or app, include 2 paragraphs as to how you would market your project.

Technology

Please create a web interface that effects change using your First Amendment rights.

Engineering

Please create a phone application that can be used by Constituting America to incorporate the various materials on our website (videos, essays, founding documents, white papers, etc.)

Math

Option 1: Please create a graphical representation of our amendment process. It should include the years that all of the amendments have been ratified and how long each amendment took to be ratified from initiation to ratification. Please include brief background material on how the amendments originated.

Option 2: Please create a quantitative analysis of the effects of a certain amendment. Example: How many 18-20-year-olds have voted since the 26th amendment, and what is the effect on voting results? Conduct an analysis of female voting patterns since the 19th Amendment, or African American voting patterns since the 15th amendment.

Science

How did the freedoms outlined in the Declaration and the Constitution accelerate science and scientific thinking?

Short Film: Please create a 5-10 minute short film that represents how the Constitution (specifically the First Amendment 60-second and our election process) prevents the dissolution of the Republic in ways that have affected other nations in the past (e.g. violent rebellion/uprising or coup d’etat). Incorporate historic examples. Must be an original film written and directed by the student. Up to two students may collaborate on and submit the short film. It must be no shorter than 5 minutes and no longer than 10 minutes in length. See Official Rules Section III for details.

Social Media Video (60-second maximum): (1) Please create a 60-second maximum video (Instagram reel, YouTube short, etc) that represents how the First Amendment rights (Religion, Assembly, Press, Petition, Speech) can be used as tools to effect change in the country and/or amend the Constitution, thus preventing the dissolution of the Republic in the ways that have affected other nations in the past (e.g. violent rebellion/uprising or coup d’etat). OR (2) Why are civil civic conversations important in our society today? It must be no longer than 60 seconds in length, originally written and directed by the student and recorded. Up to two students may collaborate on and submit the Social Media Video. Social Media Video submissions should be uploaded as 1080×1920 (9:16 aspect ratio) with the highest resolution possible to YouTube or Vimeo (download enabled). See Official Rules Section III for details.

PSA:

The PSA subject is: (1) Please a commercial suitable for airing on radio or TV that is no longer than 25 seconds, choosing one of the following prompts:

1. Why citizens should know their Constitution?
2. Why are civil civic conversations important in our society today?

Submissions should be uploaded to YouTube (640 x 360 minimum, HD preferred) or Vimeo (download enabled). The first line of the video description in the online submission must read: Submitted to Constituting America’s We The Future 2024 Contest www.constitutingamerica.org. The following must be submitted electronically through the online portal on this site: Entry permission form; YouTube or Vimeo link; script. Please include your name, age, and grade on all pages of the entry package.

The above rules are a summary only. Please consult official rules for complete instructions.