VFW Youth Scholarships & Teacher Awards 2020

by Richard Possert Jr.

There are two youth scholarships and one teacher award presented by the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) each year.

The first scholarship, established in 1947, is the VFW’s Voice of Democracy audio-essay program, which provides 9th-12th grade students with the opportunity to express themselves in a democratic and patriotic-themed spoken and recorded essay. The national first-place winner receives a $30,000 scholarship paid directly to the student’s American university, college or vocational/technical school. National scholarships range from $1,000-$16,000, and the first-place winner from each VFW Department (state) wins a minimum scholarship of $1,000 and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C.

This year’s theme: “Is This the Country the Founders Envisioned?” Students should record the reading of their drafts to an audio CD or flash drive. The recording can be no shorter than three minutes and no longer than five minutes (plus or minus five seconds). Once the audio version is burned to an audio CD/ flash drive, they should submit the CD/flash drive, plus the typed version and entry form, to their local VFW Post.

The second scholarship results from the VFW Patriot’s Pen youth essay contest, entered each year by more than 138,000 students in grades 6-8. The participants have a chance to win their share of more than $900,000 in state and national awards. Each first-place state winner receives a minimum of $500 at the national level, and the national first-place winner wins $5,000 and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. The essay contest encourages young minds to examine America’s history—along with their own experiences in modern American society—by drafting a 300- to 400-word written essay, expressing their views based on a patriotic theme chosen by the VFW Commander-in-Chief. This year’s theme: “What is Patriotism to Me?” Once complete, students should submit their written essay and entry form to their local VFW Post.

These programs are open to students enrolled in public, private and parochial schools, or a home study program in the U.S., its territories or its possessions. Dependents of U.S. military or civilian personnel in overseas schools are also eligible to participate. Students must not identify themselves, their school, or any other personal information in their essays. The deadline for each entry submission to be turned into the local VFW Post is Oct. 31, 2020.

Each year, the VFW selects elementary, middle, and high school teachers to participate in the Smart/Maher VFW National Citizenship Education Teacher program. Teachers who promote civic responsibility, flag etiquette, and patriotism are prime candidates for this award. All current certified/licensed teachers in grades K-12 are eligible. Nominations can be submitted by themselves, co-workers, supervisors, or family members. The deadline for submissions to your local VFW Post is Oct 31, 2020.

For the location of your closest VFW Post or an entry form, please contact Rich Possert at rpossert@gmail.com, or visit VFW.org/find-a-post and VFW. org/community/youth-and-education.