Students are invited to showcase their writing and critical thinking skills during the annual Constitutional Day Essay Contest. The first-place winner will receive $500 for the best essay, as judged by a diverse panel of AVC instructors. Please follow the instructions below.
The deadline to submit the essay is 8:00a.m. on Friday, October 24, 2025.
1st place: $500
2nd place: $300
3rd place: $100
4th place: $50
5th place: $25
Essay Topic: Due Process:
When offering what became the 5th Amendment, James Madison of Virginia stated that “if all power is subject to abuse, [...] then it is possible the abuse of the powers of the General Government may be guarded against in a more secure manner than is now done.” Both the 5th, as proposed by Madison, and 14th Amendment, which applies protection to the states, deal with the question of due process of law. Today we read those words as a guarantee of fundamental fairness. In prior eras of American jurisprudence, “due process” prohibited unjust or arbitrary laws.
Write an essay arguing for the contemporary relevance of due process protections in the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. Your essay should explore how these constitutional guarantees apply to modern challenges and why they remain essential to American democracy.
Limit your analysis of due process challenges to issues that have arisen in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Do not necessarily limit yourself to cases and controversies that have risen to the federal level. Include relevant references to specific court filings, transcripts, and primary documents, as well as other applicable research materials.
The essay requirements are:
- The essay should be no more than 1400-1800 words in length.
- Use of Times New Roman, 12-point font, and double spacing for all lines.
- A minimum of three citations from recent sources (five years old or less).
- MLA format for all citations, including any use of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
- Works Cited page, including entries for any use of AI.
- An essay title that reflects your answer to the topic question.
- Enrollment as an AVC student in the Fall 2025 semester.
Submit essays to https://avc.instructure.com/enroll/TWKFHE by 8:00 a.m. on Friday, October 24, 2025.
Student winners will be recognized at the AVC Board of Trustees meeting on Friday, December 12, 2025.
