LIFE Lessons Essay Contest

Contest Rules

Contest Application

2007 Contest Winners

2006 Contest Winners

2005 Contest Winners

LIFE Lessons Essay Content

Print Rules

Official Rules

1. Eligibility: The "LIFE Lessons" Scholarship Program is open only to legal residents of the fifty (50) United States and the District of Columbia, who are between 17 and 24 years of age, have experienced the death of a parent or legal guardian, and are currently enrolled in, or have been accepted to, a college, university or trade school within the fifty (50) United States or District of Columbia. Employees of Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education ("LIFE" or "Sponsor"), Weber Shandwick, and their respective parents, affiliates, subsidiaries, and advertising, and promotion agencies, and any such employee's immediate family members (spouse, parent, child, sibling and their respective spouses) and those living in their same households, whether or not related, are not eligible to enter or win a prize. A minor should have a parent's or legal guardian's permission to enter. Void where prohibited by law. Contest is subject to all applicable federal, state and local laws.
2. How to Enter: Between 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time ("ET") on March 17, 2020 and 11:59 p.m. ET on April 18, 2020 (the "Entry Period") to enter the contest, visit www.lifehappens.org/scholarship and complete and submit the online application form, including the essay of no more than 500 words or video entry of no more than 3 minutes describing how you have experienced the personal and financial challenges caused by the death of a parent or legal guardian. Online entries must be received by 11:59 p.m. ET on April 18, 2008. To receive an application form by mail, send an email to scholarship@lifehappens.org or call (202) 464-5000 x4446. You can either fax your completed application form (to be received by 11:50 p.m. ET April 18, 2020) to: (202) 464-5011, or mail it to: LIFE Lessons Scholarship Program, c/o LIFE Foundation, 1655 North Fort Myer Drive, Suite 610, Arlington, VA 22209. Mail-in entries must be postmarked by April 18, 2020 and received by April 23, 2008. All entries become the property of the Sponsor and will not be returned. Limit one (1) entry per entrant.
   
   Entry must be submitted in English, be entrant's original creation, be true and verifiable, created solely by entrant, with no restrictions or limitations on entrant's right to submit, or Sponsor's right to use, the entry. Entry may not have previously won an award. Entry cannot defame or invade publicity rights or privacy of any person, living or deceased, or otherwise infringe upon any person's personal or proprietary rights. Modifying, enhancing or altering a third party's pre-existing work does not qualify as entrant's original creation. Entry may not be offensive or inappropriate, as determined by judges in their sole discretion. Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any entry it deems to be inappropriate, offensive or is not in keeping with Sponsor's image, in its sole discretion.
3. Judging: All eligible entries received will be judged by a panel of qualified judges on the equally-weighted criteria of: 1) The compelling nature of the story (i.e., how the entrant dealt with the loss on a personal and financial level) and 2) The educational nature of the story regarding the role of insurance (i.e., how life insurance, other forms of insurance, or lack of insurance impacted the family's ability to meet future financial goals). Potential winners will be selected on or about June 5, 2020 and will be notified by telephone and/or overnight mail and/or mail. In the event of a tie, such tied entries will be re-judged by an additional "tie-breaking" judge based on the criteria set forth herein. Sponsor reserves the right not to award all prizes in the event it receives an insufficient number of eligible entries that meet the minimum judging criteria, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. Sponsor also reserves the right to reallocate scholarship from one form of entry (written essay or video entry) to another should it receive an insufficient number of entries that meet the minimum judging criteria, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. Eligibility for the bonus scholarship is limited to the first prize winners of the video entries category. The bonus prize recipient will be chosen by the public in online voting that will take place on various insurance and college scholarship websites on or around June 16. Sponsor's and judges' decisions will be final and binding in all matters relating to this contest.
4. Prizes: Written Essays: Grand Prize (1): $5,000 scholarship, to be paid directly to winner's college, university or trade school (Approximate Retail Value ("ARV"): $5,000). First Prize (4): $1,000 scholarship, to be paid directly to winner's college, university or trade school. ARV: $1,000 each. Second Prize (14): $500 scholarships, to be paid directly to winner's college, university or trade school. ARV: $500 each. Video Entries: First Prize (5): $1,000 scholarships, to be paid directly to winner's college, university or trade school. ARV: $1,000 each. Bonus Prize (1): $4,000 scholarship, to be paid directly to winner's college, university, or trade school. ARV: $4,000. Total ARV of all prizes: $25,000. All federal, state and local taxes and any other costs and expenses not specifically stated herein as being awarded are the winner's sole responsibility. No transfer, assignment, cash redemption, or substitution of prize except by Sponsor who may substitute a prize with one of equal or greater value, at its sole discretion. All prize details are at the sole discretion of the Sponsor.
5. Winner Notification: Potential winners will be required to execute and return an Affidavit of Eligibility, Liability and (where legal) Publicity Release within 10 days of issuance of notification. In the event winner is considered a minor in his/her jurisdiction of residence, prize will be awarded in the name of minor's parent/legal guardian, who will be required to fulfill all requirements imposed on winners as set forth herein. Noncompliance with the foregoing, these official rules, Sponsor's inability to contact a potential winner within a reasonable time period or prize notification returned as non-deliverable, may result in disqualification and, at Sponsor's discretion, a runner-up may be notified.
6. General Conditions: By participating, each entrant (or, if a minor, his/her parent or legal guardian) agrees (i) to be bound by the terms of these Official Rules and the decisions of the Sponsor and judges, which shall be final and binding in all respects; (ii) to release and hold harmless Sponsor, Weber Shandwick, and their respective parents, affiliates, subsidiaries, and advertising and promotion agencies, and all of their respective officers, directors, employees, representatives and agents (collectively, the "Released Parties") from any liability, loss, injury or damage to entrants or any other person or entity, including personal injury or death to participants or any other person or damage to personal or real property, due in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, by reason of entrant's participation in this contest, the use of any entry or acceptance, possession, use or misuse of a prize, and any claims based on rights of privacy, rights of publicity and/or copyright infringement; and (iii) if a winner, to the use by Sponsor and its designees of his/her name, city and state of residence, likeness and biographical information for advertising and promotion purposes in any and all media now or hereafter known throughout the world in perpetuity, without additional compensation, notification permission, unless prohibited by law. Should any portion of the contest be, in Sponsor's sole opinion, compromised by non-authorized human intervention or other causes which, in the sole opinion of the Sponsor, corrupt or impair the administration, security, fairness, or submission of entries, Sponsor reserves the right at its sole discretion to suspend, modify or terminate the contest and select the potential winners from all eligible, non-suspect entries received prior to such action using the judging procedure outlined above. Released Parties assume no responsibility for any error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, communications line failure, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to, or alteration of, submissions. Released Parties are not responsible for printing, typographical, technical, telephonic, computer, human, network or other errors relating to or in connection with the contest, including, without limitation, errors which may occur in any contest related materials, the administration of the contest, the processing or judging of entries or the announcement of the prizes; for stolen, lost, late, misdirected, inaccurate, undelivered, damaged, delayed, garbled, illegible, incomplete or postage-due entries or mail. Released Parties are not responsible for any problems or technical malfunction of any telephone network or telephone lines, computer on-line systems, servers, or providers, computer equipment, software, failure of any e-mail or entry to be received on account of technical problems, human error or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any web site, or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to individual's or any other person's computer relating to or resulting from participation in this contest or downloading any materials in this contest. CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEB SITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE CONTEST IS A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES OR OTHER REMEDIES FROM ANY SUCH PERSON(S) RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ATTEMPT TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.
7.  Use of Entry: By submitting an entry, entrant (or, if a minor, his/her parent or legal guardian) agrees Sponsor shall own the entry submitted (including all rights embodied therein) and that it and its designees may exploit, edit, modify, and distribute the entry and all elements of such entry, including, without limitation, the names and likenesses of any persons or locations embodied therein, in any and all media now known or not currently known, throughout the world in perpetuity without compensation, permission or notification to entrant or any third party.
8. Winner List: For the winners' names (available after July 1, 2020), send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to be received by August 1, 2020 to: LIFE Lessons Scholarship Program Winners, c/o LIFE Foundation, 1655 North Fort Myer Drive, Suite 610, Arlington, VA 22209.

Sponsor: Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education, 1655 North Fort Myer Drive, Suite 610, Arlington, VA 22209.