Herzog Foundation Announces 2025 Bill of Rights Essay Contest Winners
On the 234th anniversary of the ratification of the United States Bill of Rights, the Herzog Foundation proudly announces the winners of its 2025 Bill of Rights Essay Contest, recognizing outstanding middle school and high school students for their thoughtful engagement with America’s founding principles.
2025 Contest Winners
- Paloma Davis (Bishop Denis J. O’Connell High School – Arlington, VA) – High School Winner
- Sophia Tran (Grace Preparatory Academy – Arlington, TX) – Middle School Winner
The Herzog Foundation also recognizes the following runners-up for their exceptional essays:
High School Runners-Up
- Deklan Cafiero-Bladek (The Heights School – Potomac, MD) – First Runner-Up
- Brian Hince (Homeschool – Triangle, VA) – Second Runner-Up
Middle School Runners-Up:
- Max Rhinehart (The Geneva School – Laguna Woods, CA) – First Runner-Up
- Gavin Blue (Freedom Christian Academy – Fayetteville, NC) – Second Runner-Up
This year’s contest drew over 600 submissions from students in 36 states, reflecting a growing enthusiasm for studying and understanding America’s founding documents. The Herzog Foundation looks forward to building on this momentum as the nation approaches its 250th anniversary in 2026.
“As we approach the 250th anniversary of our nation, it’s encouraging to see students thoughtfully engaging with the Bill of Rights, seeing it not as distant history but as a living framework that continues to shape American life,” said Herzog Foundation Chairman Todd Graves. “These essays reflect a generation that understands liberty must be learned, protected, and passed on.”
The contest was open to middle school and high school students enrolled in a Christian school or homeschool. Each winner and their school received a $300 award, while each runner-up and their school received a $150 award.
“The depth of insight shown by these students is a testament to the role Christian education plays in forming informed, responsible citizens,” emphasized Herzog Foundation President Darrell Jones. “Christian education gives students the opportunity to study America’s founding documents through a biblical lens, helping them understand not only their historical importance, but the moral principles that underpin our freedoms.”
Students responded to the prompt: “What made the Bill of Rights revolutionary and unique at the time of its ratification? How has it shaped the United States and its citizens over the years?“
High School Winner Paloma Davis said, “The Bill of Rights was more than a response to tyranny; it marked a turning point in the global understanding of governance. While many nations clung to systems that silenced dissent and concentrated authority, the United States chose a path that placed the individual at the center of its political identity. Ten concise amendments reshaped what it meant to be governed, not as subjects beneath a crown but as citizens with voices, rights, and protections. Their influence spread outward like ink across parchment, its glow enduring centuries and urging monarchies and authoritarian regimes to reconsider the role of the people.”
Middle School Winner Sophia Tran said, “If I were to ask you what country comes to mind when I say the word ‘freedom’, what would you say? Instantly, without a doubt, the country known as ‘the Land of the Free’, a place of opportunities, a striking image of life and liberty, is none other than the United States of America. The Bill of Rights is the foundation of America, providing bold freedoms in the first and second amendments that were revolutionary concepts at the time of its ratification; thus, shaping the US and its citizens to be a united, expressive society, a nation unlike any other country in the world. The Bill of Rights, the patriotic symbol of the U.S., illuminates the foundation of what America should be and what the citizens of all 50 states should strive for.”
High School First Runner-Up Deklan Cafiero-Bladek said, “The Bill of Rights represents a complete idea of individual liberty, a daring statement that the government is a tool of the people, and that it exists for service, with true power lying with the people. From the ratification of the federal government, the Bill of Rights has served as the shield of the people, defending against any unjust laws created by the government. Around the world, many still look at the United States as a symbol of hope and liberty, and the Bill of Rights stands at the core of these virtues.”
High School Second Runner-Up Brian Hince said, “The Bill of Rights was revolutionary in the way it limited government power and protected individual liberties in ways no national constitution had done before. Its ideas came from real experiences under British rule and from people who believed that rights come from God or nature, not from governments or kings. Even though the country has changed, those protections still define what Americans expect from their government and from each other.”
Middle School First Runner-Up Max Rhinehart said, “A more revolutionary text than the Bill of Rights may never be written. It secured natural rights like freedom of opinion, religion, and the right to bear arms, protections that define what Americans expect from their government and each other. As Dwight D. Eisenhower said, ‘So long as we govern our nation by the letter and spirit of the Bill of Rights, we can be sure that our nation will grow in strength and wisdom and freedom.'”
Middle School Second Runner-Up Gavin Blue said, “On December 15, 1791, the Bill of Rights was officially added to the Constitution, guaranteeing freedoms that made the United States unique in the world. It protects essential rights like free speech, religious liberty, and fair treatment under the law, shaping our nation’s laws, culture, and values. These freedoms continue to guide Americans today and remind us that liberty is a responsibility we must uphold.”
About the Stanley M. Herzog Foundation
The Stanley M. Herzog Charitable Foundation is a charitable foundation dedicated to catalyzing and accelerating the development of quality Christ-centered K-12 education so that families and culture flourish.
Learn more at HerzogFoundation.com.