Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Sixteen middle school students competed Wednesday evening in the 2026 National Civics Bee regional contest, but it was Haylee Fletcher, Scotty Lyons and Cecilia King who placed first, second and third, respectively, to advance to the state contest this summer.
It was the third year for the contest the Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce has held in partnership with the National Civics Trust, who puts on the national bee, according to Chamber Events Coordinator Nora Christiansen.
Wednesday’s contest featured three parts.
“For our regional bee, the first thing that they have to do is submit an essay, and what happens then is that will then get graded and we will take the top 20 students that submit their essays, and we invite them to our regional bee,” she explained.
At the regional bee, held in the Warsaw Community High School Performing Arts Center, they then do three different rounds - two rounds of multiple choice, and then they defend their essay. The multiple choice questions are civics based, so they could be anything from different principles of the U.S. Constitution to the Federalist Papers to who sits on the U.S. Supreme Court.
The essay topics of the top five students at the regional contest were on social isolationism, finances, mental health for ages 18-25, microplastic pollution in lakes and streams, and shelter animals being euthanized due to overcrowding. Judges were Miriel McFarland, Stacey Leek and Marcie Fisher.
“From there, they can move on to the state competition. The top three move on to the state competition, and one student from every state is then invited to the national competition. And this year, at the national level for the first year, we will have representatives from all 50 states. They’re very excited about that,” Christiansen explained.
The state contest will be June 23 in Indianapolis.
For her topic, Fletcher, an eighth-grader at Lakeview Middle School, chose adding a financing in business course at the high school so all students can learn how to manage their money.
“I have some family members that struggle with money, so money is a big part of my life and I personally do not know how to budget money so I would like to learn and have others learn with me how to be responsible,” she said after the contest.
Fletcher was very shocked she won first place, but was thankful for everyone who “took their time to give me this opportunity.”
To prepare for state, she said she was going to study a lot, as well as focus on learning more about how to manage money so she can be a leader and start her goal.
As for what the students and community gets out of the contest, Christiansen said, “We had over 100 students submit essays, so that is 100 students who have talked about a civics topic that they find important. And if nothing else, I think it’s really important for the community to know what our young people think and what they think about our community. So at the very base level, that’s amazing, all the way to now we have more informed kids; we have kids that are trying something different and something new and maybe a little scary, which is always a good thing in a controlled environment. So it just opens up some new doors, and the top three also get a cash prize.”
Along with trophies, the prizes at the regional competition are $500 for first place, $250 for second place and $100 for third place. If they go to state, the prizes increases, as it does at the national contest.
In 2025, Barrett Hodorek, a Lakeview Middle School student, finished second in the National Championship in Washington, D.C., after winning both the local and state competitions. He won $25,000 at the national contest. Top prize was a $100,000 scholarship.
While judges tabulated the scores Wednesday, Scott Wiley, Chamber of Commerce, interviewed Hodorek. Asked how his experience was last year winning the regional Civics Bee, Hodorek said, “It was super cool. I just came to this regional bee to just do my best and I was super surprised when I won. I saw that my preparation really helped me do well in the competition.”
He said the state contest was “a lot different” than the regional, and it was held at the Indiana Statehouse, “which was super cool.” Gov. Mike Braun was there and Hodorek said he talked to all the participants beforehand.
After winning state, Hodorek said he was “pretty much in shock” but got excited he would be able to participate in the national bee.
At the national contest, which was held in Washington, D.C., Hodorek said he felt super nervous and excited because the competition was livestreamed.
“I think the best thing that I did through the Civics Bee experience was get to meet all sorts of new people, both with the Kosciusko Chamber and the Indiana Chamber and the other participants at the National Civics Bee that I really bonded with because of our shared love of communities,” Hodorek stated.
Christiansen and Wiley then presented Hodorek with the 2026 Youth Civic Excellence Award from the Chamber.
The Civics Bee is open to all middle school students - grades sixth, seventh and eighth. The essay submission for next year will open in mid-November.
Participation in the contest grows every year, Christiansen said.
“The biggest thing, I think, was we had a huge buy-in last year from the schools and we had even more kids get involved and more kids submit essays, and that widened our pool and we were able to get real top-tier talent, and I think that showed by Barrett winning our competition, winning the state competition and getting second in the national competition,” Christiansen said.
For more information and application details, contact Christiansen at the Chamber or visit the National Civics Bee website at https://my.reviewr.com/NationalCivicsBee/site/NationalCivicsBee2026
