During a daylong online celebration of First Amendment rights, high school and college students nationwide can win one of 22 $5,000 scholarships.
The “Free to Tweet” event on Dec. 15 marks the 220th anniversary of Americans’ right to free expression.
Beginning at midnight on Dec. 15, students ages 14 to 22 can tweet their support for the First Amendment with the hashtag #freetotweet, which will enter them in the “Free to Tweet” scholarship competition.
The tweet can be self-contained or link to original content on a website or other social media platform.
Students are encouraged to freely express themselves in their entries, which can be posted on any publicly viewable social media platform, including blogs.
A panel of educators and First Amendment experts will review the entries and award 22 $5,000 scholarships, one for every decade since the ratification of the Bill of Rights.
Judging criteria and complete rules can be found at www.1forall.us/freetotweet.
The initiative is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and organized by 1 for All, an unprecedented educational and public service campaign that builds understanding of the First Amendment and its five distinct freedoms: speech, press, religion, assembly and petition.
The Knight Foundation’s recently released “Future of the First Amendment” survey indicates that young people who use social media have a better understanding of First Amendment freedoms.
