WHAT IS LAMBDA DREAMERS ESSAY?

Welcome to the LDA 2026 Academic Student & Academic Athlete, a global event that allows students to express their thoughts on a patriotic theme through essays. We encourage you to be a part of this competition, joining hundreds of fellow students.

Rules and Prizes:

1. Eligibility: This competition is open ONLY to male students worldwide.

2. Theme: Participants are invited to write essays on an annual patriotic theme each year.

3. Prizes: Four chapter winners will each receive a minimum prize of $1000. (There will be two winners per category)

Tax Information: Please note that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regulations require us to issue a Form 1099 to any recipient who receives an award exceeding $599. This form will identify the award as taxable income.

HOW THE CONTEST WORKS?                              

1. Entry Levels: All submissions begin at the Chapter level. Each Chapter selects a local high school, and applicants must be high school students. There are two categories: Academic Student and Academic Athlete

   • Academic Athlete: A student maintaining good grades and actively participating in their school's sports program.

   • Academic Student: A student maintaining good grades but is not involved in sports programs, focusing on academic pursuits.

2. Disciplinary Record: Applicants must have a clean disciplinary record within one year of their application, including no suspensions, reprimands, or pending disciplinary actions.

3. Eligibility Guidelines: The Lambda Dreamers essay competition is open to 12th-grade male students in public, private, or parochial schools in the U.S. or abroad, including its territories and possessions. Eligible students can be either athletes (e.g., football, baseball, soccer) or non-athlete students (focused on career academics).

4. Winner Announcement: Winners will be announced No Later Than January 2027. To receive the scholarship money, students must provide proof of college enrollment by June 2027.

5. Residency Requirements: While U.S. citizenship is not mandatory, students must be lawful U.S. permanent residents or have applied for permanent residence (with no denials) and intend to become U.S. citizens as soon as allowed by law. Dependents of U.S. military or Department of Defense (DOD) personnel in overseas schools can also participate.

 NOTE: 12th-grade students must be enrolled by September of the year prior to graduating high school.   

GET STARTED:

1. Supervision: Find a teacher, coach, or adult leader from a youth group/club to supervise your Lambda Dreamers writing competition entry.

2. Contact Local Chapter: Get in touch with a local KLC Chapter in your state to express your interest in participating.

3. Designated Contact: Identify a contact person within the KLC Chapter who is a member to be your Sponsor.

4. Submit Your Essay: Ensure your essay is submitted via jot form (located under the "What is the Theme, Download Form" section) with the support of a KLC Chapter before the contest deadline on 01 December 2026. 

5. Questions: If you have any questions concerning this application, or if you encounter difficulty in finding a local chapter or sponsor, please contact Mr. Louis York, Dir. of Scholarship @ dirldscholarship@militaryfraternity.org 

JUDGING CRITERIA?

1. Applicants must achieve a score of at least 20 out of 36 points on their essay.

2. Applicants will select one of the provided essay topics based on the scholarship they are pursuing:

   • Academic Student: Address the theme in an essay of 1500 typewritten words. Essays under 1400 words and over 1500 words will be rejected. 

   • Academic Athlete: Address the theme in an essay of 1500 typewritten words. Essays under 1400 words and over 1500 words will be rejected. 

3. Essays will be evaluated on six criteria: Organization, Level of Content, Development, Grammar Mechanics, Style, and Format.

4. The essay should reflect the applicant's perspective, experiences, and thoughts on the theme.

5.  Please be aware that we NOW use AI technology just like other educational institutions to assist in ensuring the work is authentic and not computer generated. 

CONTEST RULES:

1. Essay Length: Essays should be 1500 typewritten words. Essays under 1400 words and over 1500 words will be rejected. 

2. Original Work: Essays must be the applicant's original work and a product of their own thinking. Plagiarism is strictly prohibited and will result in disqualification.

3. Formatting: Essays should be typed in English, with no color or graphics. The essay title or added footnotes do not count towards the word count.

4. Entry Form: The digital Official Student Entry JotForm can only be entered once by each Contestant per Theme.

5. Editing: While the applicant's teacher, counselor, or parent may check the essay for punctuation, grammar, and spelling, the content must remain the applicant's.

6. Oral Presentation: Applicants are not required to present their essays orally; they will be judged based on their written work.

7. Ownership: All essays become the property of Lambda D-R-E-A-M Academy (LDA), which retains non-exclusive rights to use them for program and activity promotion.

8. Formatting: Essays must be properly formatted and meet APA (American Psychological Association) guidelines.

Note: At any time during the contest, additional participant personal information could be requested by LDA, (i.e., SSN, photo, etc.).

DEADLINE INFORMATION

01 December 2026