Pasadena Student Wins National Reagan Oratory Competition

An 8th-grade student at Polytechnic School won the middle school division of the Ronald Reagan Oratory Competition, the Reagan Foundation announced, besting more than 2,000 students who submitted entries from all 50 states and Puerto Rico.

DJ Mavis delivered a version of President Reagan’s 1982 Radio Address to the Nation on Armed Forces Day at the competition finals on January 10 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley.

The competition, now in its second year, asked students to record video presentations of themselves reciting excerpts from Reagan radio addresses and submit them through the foundation’s online portal.

Polytechnic School, at 1030 East California Blvd. in Pasadena, is a private K-12 school founded in 1907 and was the first nonprofit, independent school in Southern California. It descends from the Throop Polytechnic Institute, the same institution that became the California Institute of Technology.

Five middle school finalists and five high school finalists were selected from the submissions to compete at the championship round, according to a Reagan Foundation press release. All 10 received all-expenses-paid trips to Southern California for the January 9-11 event.

“This competition honors Ronald Reagan’s enduring legacy by inspiring young Americans to lead, inspire, and make an impact through the power of their words,” Dr. Richard Schroeder, chief education programming officer at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute, said in the press release.

“Participating in the Ronald Reagan Oratory Competition was an incredible educational journey,” Mavis said. “I really enjoyed the realistic White House simulation, a great tour guided by knowledgeable staff, and the opportunity to connect with and hear the experiences from so many fascinating people. My time at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library was truly inspiring.”

Zander Schoultz, a junior at Lakeside High School in Hot Springs, Arkansas, won the high school division and a $1,000 scholarship. High school finalists presented Reagan’s 1986 Radio Address to the Nation on Voluntarism.

The other middle school finalists were Olivia Norris of West Feliciana Middle School in Louisiana, Varsh Varun of Scottsdale Preparatory Academy in Arizona, Kennedy Clarke of River Trail Middle School in Georgia and Arrow Moyer of Ballard Elementary School in Solvang, according to the foundation.

The competition is part of the Reagan Foundation’s Civil Discourse Project, which the foundation describes as a program to develop civic engagement and public speaking skills among students in grades 5 through 12. The competition is free to enter. More information is available at reaganfoundation.org/education.

The Reagan Foundation held the inaugural oratory competition in Washington, D.C., in February 2024. In its second year, the program moved the finals to the Reagan Library campus in Simi Valley, drawing entries from every state.