Schools Show Off American Pride Through “America Is …” Video Contest

Schools across the country showcased their American pride through the “America Is…” Video Contest. Students created their own original videos that represented their school, its mission and their passion for patriotism.

With the growing popularity of the contest, this year WoodmenLife included a high school division (grades 9-12) in addition to the kindergarten through eighth-grade division (K-8). Students submitted an original video up to 60 seconds long illustrating the theme “America Is…My Hometown.” The top three videos in each division were selected by online public voting on the WoodmenLife’s hosted contest site.

In all, WoodmenLife counted over 8,000 total votes in the contest.

The six winners were among 32 eligible submissions from across the country interpreting the contests theme, giving students an opportunity to put a spotlight back onto their communities while being able to share the WoodmenLife Story with thousands of people across America.

K-8 Division

Grand Prize, $2,500  — West Point Elementary, West Point, NE

Second Place, $1,500  — Flaherty Primary School, Ekron, KY

Third Place, $1,000  — Kiroli Elementary, West Monroe, LA

9-12 Division

Grand Prize, $2,500  — Johnson-Brock Public School, Johnson, NE

Second Place, $1,500  — Johnson County High School, Mountain City, TN

Third Place, $1,000  — Harvest Time Christian Academy, Flint, TX

West Point Elementary

Alyssa Schuetze’s class was inspired to highlight the people and places that they love about their hometown. They dedicated their video to the healthcare workers, First Responders, Veterans, and others who make a positive impact on their community every day. For Schuetze’s class, it’s the people who make the hometown what it is, and they wanted to express just how much they love their hometown.

“The kids enjoyed every aspect of creating the video from beginning to end,” Schuetze said. “There is nothing more rewarding than seeing their excitement through this whole process. Thank you, WoodmenLife, for an exciting opportunity to show the patriotism and love we have for our hometown.”

Flaherty Primary School

At Flaherty Primary, their everyday motto is “PRIDE.” These are the expectations that Dee Delancey has her students follow to help them be a better school community. While they show their pride every day for their school, the students wanted to show for the “America Is …” Video Contest how younger generations can take pride in their community and in our great nation.

“The contest provided our students with a moment to pause and reflect on what greatness lies within the fibers of our country,” Delancey said. “We proudly submitted the video from our little school and were ecstatic to learn that we placed second in the nation. In a small community and small school, every dollar can make a great impact on the lives of our students. We are thankful for this opportunity.”

Kiroli Elementary

Kara Hawkins has students in her class who have family members serving our country in the military. After studying the challenges our forefathers faced settling in the New Country, the students wanted to honor those who protect and serve to give citizens the freedoms and opportunities we enjoy every day. The fifth-grade students wrote each part of the video and came up with the idea of including military branches. They gave a small speech on freedom, opportunity and military service members.

“I believe we have a responsibility to instill values of respect for our great country in our students,” Hawkins said. “By having students think what America means to them, they have a deeper respect and understanding as they advance in age. As a teacher, I could not be prouder of my school for putting so much thought and effort into this contest.”

Johnson-Brock Public School

When Tera Stutheit had her students brainstorm what America meant to them, they kept mentioning how there are such unique and great opportunities in our country. They realized that many of these opportunities start in school. What inspired their video was thinking about all the opportunities that youth have in America because of education.

“The video contest provided an opportunity for students to practice all stages of video production,” Stutheit said. “Our goal was to win over the audience, and we were thrilled to learn we won first place. The prize money will greatly benefit our Broadcasting program, our school and our community. Thank you, WoodmenLife.”

Johnson County High School

Bethany McFadden’s class was inspired by the love that they have for their country and small town.

“Receiving the news that my group won second place was a shock in the best way possible,” McFadden said. “Being one of the smaller schools that entered the contest, it was amazing to see the outcome of us winning second place. We worked hard brainstorming and executing our video and are truly blessed to place second.”

Harvest Time Christian Academy

As a multi-cultural school in eastern Texas, Harvest Time Christian Academy was founded on the beliefs that our great nation is indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Justin Jones’ classes illustrated their video to represent these beliefs. It was put forth by the high school grades at Harvest Time Christian Academy.

“Thank you, WoodmenLife for this opportunity,” Jones said. “It was a fun contest with many great videos. We are blessed to have a hometown like America.”