Category: IPA
DCCE Leaders Host First Delaware Civics Bee
July 08, 2026 Written by Sophonie Milord | Photos by Biden School Staff
On Friday, June 12, 2026, the Delaware Center for Civics Education (DCCE) hosted the inaugural Delaware Civics Bee at Legislative Hall in Dover. Seventeen middle school students from across the state participated, culminating in three student winners. This event is part of the , started in 2022 by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation to challenge students across the country to learn more about civics and government.
Delaware students submitted essays addressing an issue in their community and explaining how they would solve it using civic action. A national pool of judges scored student essays and identified the top 20 middle schoolers to advance to the state finals. During the event on June 12th, students engaged in two rounds of answering challenging civics questions, with the top 5 advancing to Round 3. During this final round, students presented 3-minute speeches on the topic of their initial essay and engaged in a question-and-answer session with three judges: Ed Freel, IPA senior fellow; Kelly Sherretz, IPA lead policy scientist; and Kerrie Welcher, Delaware State Chamber Foundation director.聽
The 2026 Delaware Civics Bee Winners included the following:
1st Place: Tab Wang from Henry B. duPont Middle School in the Red Clay Consolidated School District won $1,000 and will represent Delaware at the 2026 National Civics Bee with a chance to win $100,000 for college.
2nd Place: Ayushi Ghosh from Alfred G. Waters Middle School in the Appoquinimink School District won $500.
3rd Place: Kayla Kozak from Newark Charter Junior High School in the Newark Charter School District won $250.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, the Delaware Office of the Governor, the Delaware Department of Education, the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce, and the Biden School sponsored this event.
