Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Competing against other state champion students from around the country, Lakeview Middle School’s Barrett Hodorek, Warsaw, took second place in the Civics Bee National Championship Nov. 10-11 in Washington, D.C.
Aarit Koul, a middle school student from Jackson Township, Ohio, was named the 2025 National Civics Bee champion, receiving the Bill Daniels National Civics Award and a $100,000 education savings prize, according to the news release from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
The event was hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, with Emmy-winning actor and television host Mario Lopez as the emcee and livestreamed on YouTube.
There were four rounds of competition. The group challenge was on Monday, Nov. 10. Finalists were divided into teams, with each group assigned an issue to discuss. They needed to develop a solution implementing founding principles and civic virtues, and involving partners such as elected officials, businesses and/or other organizations.
The three final rounds were held Nov. 11 in front of a live audience at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In the second round, finalists were required to answer challenging multiple choice civics questions increasing in difficulty.
The 10 students with the highest cumulative scores from rounds one and two moved on to round three - the speech and question-and-answer round. Hodorek was in fourth place heading into the third round where he presented his speech on the topic of clean lakes and their impact on the community. According to his mother, Amber, Barrett defended his topic well when he was asked some challenging questions from the judges.
After all the scores were added up from the first three rounds, the top five finalists moved on to the final buzzer round. Amber said this was an intense and fast-paced challenge where the finalists had to think on their feet and rely on their hours of preparation.
In the end, Barrett won second place and was awarded a check for $25,000.
The Civics Bee competition started as an essay assignment in Barrett's Honors English class at Lakeview Middle School. Many teachers were instrumental in helping prepare Barrett for the competition. April Boggs was his English teacher and Brandon Murphy was the social studies teacher that helped Barrett study and prepare.
Barrett has not only spent numerous hours studying all things civics, he has also poured significant time and effort into his topic of clean lakes and their impact on the community, according to Amber.
She said, “Barrett's success is in large part to the many community members who have spent time helping him refine his speech and gain a deeper knowledge to be able to answer tough questions from judges. This includes leaders from both The Watershed Foundation (specifically Mariah Roberts and Lyn Crighton), along with Nate Bosch from Lilly Center for Lakes and Streams.”
Barrett was declared the winner of the Indiana Civics Bee on Sept. 29. He had won the Kosciusko County National Civics Bee, hosted by the Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce, back in April.
Julia Martinez and Todd Hurst, from the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, also made the trip to Washington, D.C., to support Barrett.
Judges for the national championship included Emma Bloomberg, founder and CEO of Murmuration; former Secretary of Transportation Rodney Slater; and former Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson. In a full-circle moment, Emily Brubaker, last year’s inaugural National Civics Bee champion, returned as a judge.
The competition can be watched online at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjsqiKDf3Rc
The National Civics Bee, a program of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Civic Trust, is an annual competition aimed at improving civics education and literacy among middle school students, their families and communities. The National Civics Bee helps elevate civics as a national priority through a network of state and local chambers across the country. It is made possible through the support of its founding partner, the Daniels Fund, as well as Beth and Ravenel Curry Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Citizen Travelers, Fisher Global Foundation, Ibis Group, The Anschutz Foundation, Wilson Garling Foundation, and other funders.
