Earns $25K Scholarship, National Championship

HILLSDALE. Mich., May 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A high school senior from Colorado Springs, Colo., capped a busy weekend of competition by earning a $25,000 college scholarship and first place in The American Legion High School Oratorical Scholarship Program – "A Constitutional Speech Contest." Juliet Hetzel's winning prepared oration was titled "The Role of Religion in Civic Duty."

Hetzel started the weekend as one of 53 state or department champions in the 87th annual contest. She advanced to the championship through three rounds of intense competition. She was sponsored by American Legion Post 209 in Colorado Springs.

Wendy Gluski, a 12^th grade student from Scottsdale, Ariz., earned a $22,500 college scholarship with a second-place finish, while Judah Donnelly, a senior from Clarks Summit, Pa., earned $20,000 and third place in the national competition. The scholarships account for a small portion of post-secondary scholarships that The American Legion, the nation's largest veterans organization, awards annually.

In her prepared oration, Hetzel pointed out that the term "separation of Church and State," does not appear in the Constitution.

"As President  George Washingon warned, 'Religion and morality are  the  essential pillars of civil society.' But modern America has taken the term 'separation of Church and State' to mean that we  need a secular public entirely devoid of one foundational pillar. The First Amendment was never intended to be a muzzle for people of faith," Hetzel said.

In each round of the weekend competition, orators delivered a rehearsed 8- to 10-minute address and a randomly assigned 3- to 5-minute oration on a constitutional topic, each without the benefit of notes and in front of a live audience, including the judges. The American Legion developed the contest to encourage young people to improve their communications skills and to study the U.S. Constitution. The American Legion awarded more than $8 million in youth scholarships at the post, state and national levels in 2026.

Media Contact: John Raughter (317) 630-1350, jraughter@legion.org.

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SOURCE The American Legion