The Search for Our Next Constitutional Amendment

A scholarship competition co-sponsored by American Promise Education Fund and the Sumners Foundation

It has been nearly three decades since the United States Constitution was last updated through ratification of the 27th Amendment.  Over this time, trust in governmental institutions has deteriorated and social cohesion has frayed.
To explore the constitutional dimensions of America’s current trust deficit, American Promise is organizing a competitive scholarship opportunity for undergraduates.  We will be confronting the fundamental sources of the problems facing American democracy – such as money in politics, hyperpolarization, and election access and integrity.

This scholarship competition is open to undergraduate students at the University of Texas at Austin (UT) and Texas A&M University (A&M).  Students will compete in teams of 4 people, and each university can send up to five teams.

Each team will propose specific text for a constitutional amendment that is designed to strengthen trust between We the People and our government.  The competing teams will present and defend their proposals at a live judging session on Sunday, October 16, 2022 in Austin, Texas.

A live-stream of the competition will also be available online, and viewers will be able to share input about the teams’ proposals.

Each member of the winning team will receive a $2,000 scholarship ($8,000 total for the team).
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American Promise & Sumners Foundation Scholarship Competition - Team Application

Each team should complete one application that includes information about all four of your team members. Thank you for your interest!

APPLICATIONS ARE DUE BY MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2022.

Teams that are accepted into the competition will be notified by September 26, 2022, and will receive detailed instructions about how to access “virtual office hours” with subject-matter mentors across the country.  Competing teams will have three weeks to complete their proposals before presenting them to the judges on October 16, 2022.

Resources

Competition Rules & FAQ

Recommended Reading

  • Ruth Bader Ginsburg, On Amending the Constitution: A Plea for Patience (1990)
  • Christopher L. Eisgruber, The Living Hand of the Past: History and Constitutional Justice (1997)

This scholarship program is offered by American Promise Education Fund, a national nonprofit 501(c)(3) with a mission to unite and empower Americans from across the political spectrum to build a lasting republic and healthy democracy.  Support for this program is offered by The Sumners Foundation, a Texas-based foundation dedicated to the study, teaching, and research into the science and art of self-government.