HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah — Teenagers will have a unique opportunity to earn scholarship funds while learning about military aviation history through the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force’s Ninth Annual Air Force Heritage and History Writing Competition.
This year’s theme focuses on the fact that July 2019 marks 50 years since humans first walked upon any surface other than our planet Earth! On July 20, 1969, as part of the Apollo 11 mission, Neil Armstrong took that “giant leap” onto the surface of the moon.
The research questions for the competition are as follows: Please provide a brief history of this monumental achievement. Then, discuss whether you believe the U.S. should return to supporting human spaceflight beyond Earth orbit or concentrate solely on robotic explorations. Use scholarly research to provide the rationale for your decision, including the opinions (both for and against) of noted scientists, engineers, government officials and other stakeholders in the field of space exploration.
The competition is open to the first 250 public, private school or homeschooled students between the ages of 13-18, giving them a chance to showcase their writing talents while vying for scholarship funds. Entries must be submitted via email by March 1, 2019. Local educators will determine the finalists, and those submissions will be sent on to national-level judges to decide on the three winners. The requirements for this writing competition meet Common Core curriculum English Language Arts writing standards for grades six-12.
Scholarship award money is provided through the generosity of the Air Force Museum Foundation, Inc. A $2,500 scholarship will be awarded to the first place winner, $1,500 to the second place winner and $1,000 to the third place winner. (Federal endorsement is not implied.)
A complete list of competition guidelines is available on the museum’s website at www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Education/Writing-Competition.
The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, is the world’s largest military aviation museum. With free admission and parking, the museum features more than 360 aerospace vehicles and missiles and thousands of artifacts amid more than 19 acres of indoor exhibit space. Each year about one million visitors from around the world come to the museum. For more information, visit www.nationalmuseum.af.mil.
