VCHH Scholarship | VALOUR CANADA

Valour Canada History & Heritage Scholarship

2024-25

The 2024-25 VCHHS contest IS OPEN!

Winners of the 2023-24 contest will be announced in mid-October 2024.

To download a PDF copy of the rules and eligibility requirements, please click HERE
To download a PDF copy of the RUBRIC, please click HERE
The 2024-25 contest closes at day’s end on June 11, 2025.
To see the submissions of past winners, please scroll down to below the picture or click here.

The aim of Valour Canada’s History and Heritage Scholarship is to support Canadian students in their educational pursuits in an engaging, thought-provoking, and memorable manner. The student who creates the best video response to the question provided below will be awarded a $1,500 scholarship to be put towards their post-secondary education. The runner-up will receive a $500 scholarship.

Students must create and submit the following two items to enter the scholarship contest:

A one or two paragraph introductory document that explains why you chose to apply for Valour Canada’s History and Heritage Scholarship (.doc or .pdf format please). This will not be evaluated.
A YouTube-compatible video between four and six minutes long that educates viewers about your chosen memorial, monument, or place (see the question below). Your video should open with a still screen title page that includes: the video title, your name, your town/city, and your school. Your video should close with a still screen showing your references (as per Chicago-style formatting requirements). Your video should not have music.

Note: Regarding the video submission, applicants can provide a link to a Dropbox folder, Google Drive, or similar, that holds the finished video file. MAKE SURE TO SAVE YOUR VIDEO AT A HIGH RESOLUTION, but please smaller than 1 GB.

Deadline and Eligibility:

Both the introductory document and the video must be received by email to Valour Canada by 23:59, June 11th, 2025 (EST). If after all evaluations are completed, your entry is found to deserve an award, a potential winner must provide a signed ELIGIBILITY & LIABILITY/PUBLICITY RELEASE, proof of age, and proof of enrolment. (For more on eligibility requirements, please refer to the “Eligibility Package”).

Evaluation Criteria:

A submission’s final grade consists solely of the video score (100% of final grade). For a more-detailed description of the criteria for the video, please see the provided rubric.

Please ensure that Chicago style referencing is employed for any resources used in your response. Use THIS TOOL (http://www.citationmachine.net/chicago). Plagiarism is unacceptable and will result in disqualification.

The Essay Question:

Visit a local Canadian war memorial, monument, or important place in military history. Describe it, then compare and contrast its historical context with your opinion of its current meaning. Finish with some commentary about the role of Canadian war memorials in the 21st century.

Your response should reference at least two of Valour Canada’s six pillars of character (communication, cooperation, courage, responsibility, resilience, thoughtfulness).

Good luck!!

Fernie’s war monument, dedicated by Lord Byng in 1922, was “erected to perpetuate our honoured dead and those who carried on in the Great War from Fernie and District (Credit: Veterans.gc.ca; pxfuel.com).

VCHHSwinners

Past Winners of Valour Canada’s History & Heritage Scholarship

Winners in 2022-2023

Hania Templeton

– First Place –

Hometown: Vancouver, BC
High School: EBUS Academy
University: Athabasca University
Topic: The Angel of Victory: Canada’s Processing of the Great War

Essay: The Angel of Victory: Canada’s Processing of The Great War

Tina Liu

– Second Place –

Hometown: Scarborough, ON
High School: Victoria Park Collegiate Institute
University: McMaster University
Topic: The Soldiers’ Tower: A Symbol of Sacrifice and Scholarship

Essay: The Soldiers’ Tower: A Symbol of Sacrifice and Scholarship

To view the other award-winning videos from 2022-23, click HERE and view videos 19-21.

Winners in 2021-2022

Iqra Jamil

– First Place –

Hometown: Calgary, AB
High School: Calgary Islamic School Akram Jomma
University: University of Calgary
Topic: The South African War Memorial

Essay: The South African War Memorial: An Evolving Identity

Minnie Deng

– Second Place –

Hometown: Guelph, ON
High School: Guelph Collegiate Vocational Institute
University: University of Alberta
Topic: The Memorials of GCVI

Essay: The Memorials of Guelph Collegiate Vocational Institute

To view the other award-winning videos from 2021-22, click HERE and view videos 13-18.

Winners in 2020-2021

Katie Roy

– First Place –

Hometown: Vancouver, BC
High School: Vancouver Technical Secondary
University: University of British Columbia
Topic: Japanese Canadian War Memorial

Essay: The Japanese Canadian War Memorial: The Struggle for Enfranchisement and Recognition in Canada

Jonathan Babcock

– Second Place –

Hometown: Seeley’s Bay, ON
High School: Virtual Learning Centre
University: TBD
Topic: National Aboriginal Veterans Monument

Essay: Lest We Forget: Remembering the Contributions and Sacrifices of Indigenous Veterans

To view the other award-winning videos from 2020-21, click HERE.

Winners in 2019-2020

G.E. Small

– First Place –

Hometown: Barrie, ON
High School: Bear Creek Secondary School
University: Huron University College
Topic: Barrie Cenotaph

Essay: The Barrie Cenotaph: The Monument, and its Modern Implications (Biblio here)

Sophia Andia

– Second Place –

Hometown: Ottawa, ON
High School: Colonel By Secondary School
University: University of Ottawa
Topic: National War Memorial

Essay: The Cold Stone of the Past and the Flourishing Flowers of the Future: An Analysis of the National War Memorial

To view the other award-winning videos from 2019-20, click HERE.

Valour Canada’s History and Heritage Scholarship: Rules and Regulations

The following rules and regulations apply and are in accordance with Section 74.06 of Canada’s Competition Act, Section 206 of Canada’s Criminal Code, and Canada’s Copyright Act:

The Valour Canada History and Heritage Scholarship (VCHHS) contest is open to all Canadian citizens or permanent residents residing in Canada, excluding residents of Quebec, who are younger than 21 years old prior to 11:59 PM (EST), June 30, 2025. This is to accommodate students who take a gap year. There will not be regional allocation of scholarships. No purchase necessary for contest entry.
Eligible persons must not have attended a post-secondary education institution at any time between September 1, 2024, and August 13, 2025.
VCHHS entries must be emailed to our Educator and must be received by Valour Canada before 11:59 PM (EST), June 11, 2025.
Submitted entries will be evaluated based on the criteria in VCHHS Rubric. Valour Canada (VC) educators will select the best 10-15 submissions which will then be provided to VC’s Education Subcommittee for final assessment to determine a winner, a runner-up, and the 3^rd through 6^th best submissions.
One VCHHS winner and one runner-up will be chosen and awarded as follows: VCHHS winner will receive a $1,500 scholarship and the runner-up will receive a $500 scholarship. Both will be notified via email before 11:59 PM (EST), August 6, 2025. The creator of each of the 3^rd through 6^th best submissions will have their videos published alongside the winning and runner-up videos. All winners will be notified via email before 11:59 PM (EST), August 27, 2025.
All 6 winning videos will be published on VC’s YouTube page, so that Canadians around the world can access them. VC will reference the creator of each video in the description for each respective video.
The probability of winning the VCHHS scholarship or an award will depend on the number of entries and the quality of the submissions.
A skill testing question must be answered correctly by all winners and all winners will be responsible for any tax incurred by their award. Awards will be mailed to the winners to be received before October 15, 2025.
Winners who do not respond via phone or email within 5 business days of being contacted, who do not answer the skill testing question correctly, who cannot show proof of attendance at a post-secondary education institution on a full-time basis for the upcoming academic year, who cannot show proof of age, or who do not sign our “ELIGIBILITY & LIABILITY/PUBLICITY RELEASE” will be disqualified and the scholarship will be awarded to the next in line as per the criteria outlined above.
The “ELIGIBILITY & LIABILITY/PUBLICITY RELEASE” outlines that each scholarship winner consents to VC’s use of their name, address (town/city and province only), and submitted materials without further compensation. Only the first and second place winners will be required to complete this release.
VC is not responsible for any complications negatively affecting any scholarship contest entries or any other errors or negligence that may arise in connection with this scholarship contest.
VC also retains full rights to the administering of the scholarship contest according to the law and retains the right to terminate the scholarship contest at any time and without notice.