This September marks the tenth year of the Young Patriot Challenge (YPC) — the annual competition that offers students throughout Merced County the opportunity to share their perspectives on the U.S. Constitution.
The contest is open to all Merced County public school and homeschool students and helps them learn about the U.S. Constitution in a creative and fun way.
YPC also provides both public and homeschool teachers with the opportunity to meet the federal requirements to teach students about the U.S. Constitution every year on Constitution Day, Sept. 17.
Kindergarten to sixth-grade students will create posters, middle school students will write essays and high school students will prepare speeches as part of the annual competition.
Students who participate have the chance to win cash, gift cards and other prizes.
The prompt for this year is “Which amendment of the U.S. Constitution would you repeal or rewrite? Please explain why you would take this action and the beneficial outcome(s) for the nation.”
Constitution Week takes place between Sept. 12-16 with all submissions due to the Merced County Office of Education by Sept. 16. Selected posters are displayed at the Merced Mall from Oct. 6-18.
The award ceremony for parents and contest winners of all grade levels is scheduled for Oct. 19 at 6:30PM at the Atwater Community Center, 760 E. Bellevue Rd.
When asked about the competition, YPC Chairperson Barbara Riis-Christensen quoted Abraham Lincoln, “Don’t interfere with anything in the Constitution. That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties.”
For more information on this year’s Young Patriot Challenge contact YPC Chairperson Barbara Riis-Christensen at 358-8404 or visit https://www.ypcusa.net.