National Civics Bee to return to Cedar Rapids
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) - Middle schoolers will have the chance to show off their smarts in the area’s second-annual Civics Bee.
The Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance Foundation will host the regional contest in spring of 2027, open to any middle school students in Eastern Iowa.
The National Civics Bee is a nonpartisan competition from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation to improve civic literacy and community problem-solving.
To enter, students will write an essay on a change they would like to see in their area and explain how to make it happen using different civic principles.
Applications will open on the Economic Alliance’s website on September 7 and run through February 2, 2027.
The 20 highest-scoring regional essays will be selected to move on to the in-person Regional Competition in Cedar Rapids.
The Regional Competition has three rounds. There’s two rounds of civics quiz questions. The top scorers will move on to a third round of competition to answer questions from a panel of judges on their essays.
After the third round, the top-three finalists will be selected. Last year, third place won $125, second place won $250 and first place won $500.
Those finalists will move on to the State Finals, where they will face the winners from Iowa’s other regional competitions. The first-place state winner will receive $1,000.
The winner of the state competition will represent Iowa and advance to the National Civics Bee in Washington, D.C.
The winner of the National Civics Bee will win $100,000.
The 2026 National Civic Bee is on October 14, where Iowa’s winner Michael O’Mara will have his last chance to win the national title.
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