Renton, Wash. Homeschooled Student Wins American Legion Oratoricals

Earns $25K Scholarship, National Championship

HILLSDALE. Mich. , May 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- A home-schooled high school sophomore from Renton, Wash., 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." Aubrey Jane Moore's winning prepared oration was titled "Why Freedom of Speech is in Danger."

Moore started the weekend as one of 52 state or department champions in the 85th annual contest. She advanced to the championship through three rounds of intense competition. She was sponsored by American Legion Post 186 in Seattle.

Knox Andrew Boyd, a senior from Lafayette, Ind., earned a $22,500 college scholarship with a second-place finish, while David Eugene Daniel a 12^th grader from Owensboro, Ky., earned $20,000 and third place in the 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, Moore opened with a series of statements from gun policy to immigration that can be considered controversial. "Throughout American history, all kinds of opinions, thoughts and beliefs have been voiced no matter the sentiment because whether or not you approve or hate what I say, you must support my right to say it," she explained. "This is the power of free speech. And yet in recent years, we have seen a pushback on this fundamental right."

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 nearly 1.6-million-member American Legion developed the contest to encourage young people to improve their communications skills and to study the U.S. Constitution. More than $3 million in scholarships have been awarded over the history of the contest.

Media Contact:  John Raughter, (317) 630-1350, [email protected].

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SOURCE The American Legion National Headquarters