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DeSantis: New College of Florida Debate Prize to Be Named After Charlie Kirk

The Charlie Kirk Prize offers a $50,000 scholarship to the Florida Civics and Debate Initiative champion among over 4,200 students competing statewide.

  • On Monday, October 27, 2025, Governor Ron DeSantis announced at New College of Florida in Sarasota that the statewide speech and debate trophy would be renamed in honor of Charlie Kirk.
  • DeSantis credited Florida's civics expansion, growing FCDI from 59 teams in 11 districts to over 330 teams in all 67 counties, and launching a Civics Seal of Excellence program with a $3,000 bonus for teachers.
  • Scholarships are structured as follows: the champion earns $50,000 and the Charlie Kirk trophy, the runner-up $25,000, semifinalists $15,000 each, and quarterfinalists $10,000 each, with winner and runner-up invited to the National Ronald Reagan Debate in California.
  • DeSantis also announced an expanded partnership with Turning Point to let any Florida high school start a Club America chapter, while New College of Florida plans a privately funded Charlie Kirk statue and will host over 600 participants on April 5, 2026.
  • Officials say the effort is intended to deepen students' understanding of America's founding principles and foster active civic participation; the state has placed George Washington and Thomas Jefferson statues and awarded grants worth more than $1M to commemorate America 250 by July 2026.
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FOX13news broke the news in Florida, United States on Monday, October 27, 2025.
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