2026 STudent SchoLARSHIP
One Southlake unveils its 2026 Student Scholarship Contest
One Southlake is proud to unveil its 2026 Student Scholarship Program.
All the contestants are required to complete a brief online class on the subject of Marxism, Socialism and Communism through Hillsdale College Online and ancillary video resources from the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation.
This year's scholarship is open to ALL Texas 11th and 12th graders including home-schooled students.
Student Awards:
- First Prize: $2,000
- Second Prize: $1,000
The deadline is April 1, 2026. See below for details.
Scholarship & Grant Overview
Background:
One Southlake is a 501(c)(3), history enrichment program whose mission is to educate people about what it's like NOT to grow up in the United States through the stories of people who have immigrated here. The program creates a deeper appreciation of America’s founding and history through the eyewitness accounts of people who did not grow up with the liberties and opportunities many of us take for granted.
Because so many of our speakers come from socialist and communist countries, we strive to use their personal histories to show what it’s like to live without the protections afforded by the United States Constitution. Our speaker programs are endorsed by Texas State Senator Donna Campbell, author of SB 24, a new law that seeks to fill a gap in students’ historical understanding of tactics and consequences of communism.
What's required and who's eligible:
The One Southlake Scholarship for 2026 provides College and Technical School Scholarships to exceptional students. It requires several hours of online coursework, a video presentation and an application. It is open to all Texas 11th through 12th graders, including home-school students.
Student Awards:
● First Prize: $2,000
● Second Prize: $1,000
Application Requirements:
1. April 1, 2026: Application due by 11:59 p.m. CST
2. Must be a U.S. Citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States of America
3. Must provide all required elements outlined below.
To Apply Students must:
● be enrolled as a full-time, or home-schooled, 11th or 12th grader in Texas.
● plan to attend accredited undergraduate colleges and universities, or vocational/technical and trade schools.
● upload an unofficial transcript (or home-school official equivalent) in the online application portal or have it emailed to OneSouthlake@gmail.com
● fill out the online application; upload your video presentation; and the additional documentation described below.
Awarding of the Scholarships:
Scholarship winners will be recognized at their school or at a private presentation at a date to be determined where a check will be presented to the student toward their continuing education.
Scholarship Rules
Student Scholarship
One Southlake is using the free online educational resources from Hillsdale College and Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, two 501(c)(3) educational institutions. One Southlake doesn’t benefit financially from working with either organization.
*Parents and Students please note: the Hillsdale College class is a college-level curriculum; it contains archival images of victims of communism that are graphic in nature.
Step 1: Complete the following learning modules
Learn
A. Marxism, Socialism, Communism from Hillsdale College: Take Hillsdale’s free online class, a combination of brief videos with quizzes. Estimated completion time is 3.5 hours. Save your completion certificate as a PDF file. You must upload this with your submission. *If you received this certificate in 2024 or 2025, it’s still good to use in the 2026 Scholarship.
B. Witness Project from Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation:(https://victimsofcommunism.org/programs/witness-project/) View at least one video and take notes to cite in your video presentations.
Step 2: Show us what you learned.
Video: Create a TED-talk video presentation answering the prompt below. Feel free to use graphics to illustrate your points. Source your work. Make sure your video is no longer than 10 minutes, and you own the right to use all music & images on the video. Make sure your video does not contain inappropriate language, images or sounds.
PROMPT:
Xi Van Fleet, who survived China’s Cultural Revolution, writes on X that “Collectivism is the essence of both Fascism and Communism. Individualism—and by extension, America—stands as their natural enemy.”
Using supporting evidence from the Hillsdale Marxism class, the Victims of Communism “Witness Project” videos and/or notes from hearing One Southlake speakers, explain how she might have come to this conclusion. How can contemporary Marxist attitudes, left unchecked, potentially erode constitutional protections like those in the First and Fifth Amendments? Are concepts like state-owned grocery stores, reparations, and aggressive schemes to redistribute wealth and perceived privilege compatible with Constitutional liberties and a free market? Why or why not?
Step 3: Submit
Link to the Student Scholarship Application Portal:
Upload your Hillsdale Class Certificate, along with your video or link to video and unofficial transcript or other information to the scholarship portal. Deadline is April 1, 2026, 11:59 p.m. *Finalists might be asked to speak at a One Southlake event honoring our winners!
Rules & Guidelines
- Use of Artificial Intelligence. It is prohibited to use any software or program which utilizes artificial intelligence to create your video presentation. If the transcript for your video receives a score of 40 percent or higher on two different AI detectors, it will automatically be eliminated.
- Construction of Entry: You are responsible for the research, design, and creation of your entry. You may seek guidance from your teachers as you research and analyze your material, but your conclusions must be your own. You may have reasonable help preparing your project e.g. a mentor may provide context on your topic as both a primary or secondary source.
- Annotated Bibliography: An annotated bibliography is required for all entries. List only those sources that contributed to the development of your entry, i.e., sources that provided usable information or new perspectives in preparing your entry. Sources of visual and audio materials and oral interviews must be included. Note: Oral history transcripts, correspondence between you and experts, questionnaires, and other primary or secondary materials used as sources for your entry should be cited in your bibliography but not included as attachments to your bibliography.
- Plagiarism: You must acknowledge in your annotated bibliography all sources used in your entry. Failure to credit sources is plagiarism and will result in disqualification.
- Permission to Publish: Winning videos sometimes are published by contest officials; you must be prepared to give permission for such publication.
Information about Judging: Judging will be double blind with volunteers using a rubric that allots the following weight:
● Demonstration of Understanding of material (70%)
● Clarity of Presentation (30%)
Scholarship PortalS
The 2025 Scholarship Winners
Haylie Geraci won First Place in the One Southlake 2025 Scholarship with a $2,000 scholarship for her video presentation. She is a graduating senior from Byron Nelson High School who’s headed off to Texas A&M University to major in communications.
Oscar Weber, a Southlake Carroll Senior High School Senior, won Second Place and was awarded a $1,500 scholarship.
Oscar will be attending the University of Texas at Austin, majoring in International Business at the McCombs School of Business on a Pre-Law track.
Kailena Preston, a junior at The Colony High School in Lewisville ISD, won Third Place for her essay. She was awarded $1,000.
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