Friend,

I am so excited to announce the winners of AU’s 2022 Student Essay Contest!

Meet Ashleen Girn of Springfield, Missouri; Ira Sharma of Memphis, Tennessee; Sally Geoghegan of Wilbraham, Massachusetts; and Wassila Mehimda of Revere, Massachusetts. Click here to read their essays!

Thanks to your support, each of our winners received a cash prize of $500-1,500, and the first-place winner was published in AU’s Church & State magazine this month!

This past year we received almost 200 submissions from high school juniors and seniors and recent graduates across the country, who were invited to write about the importance and impact of recent Supreme Court decisions on church-state separation. 

We were blown away by the quality of the submissions. It was incredibly difficult to choose the winners, but we think you’ll agree that these four students made powerful arguments shared from their unique perspectives.

I want to give a huge thanks to all who participated—and to our members, who make this contest possible every year. Together, we’re building a movement to protect religious freedom for all long into the future.

Sincerely,

Alicia Johnson
National Organizer and Student Network Manager

PS. The 2023 student contest will launch soon, with new categories for both essays and video submissions, and prizes for high school and college students! Sign up here to be notified when we open for submissions.