BBB Ethical Torch Essay Scholarship

Five students in Greater Arizona, five students in Orange County, California, and five students in San Diego County, California to be awarded with scholarship prizes. 

1st - $1,500
2nd - $1,250
3rd - $1,000
4th - $750
5th - $500

ELIGIBILITY

Students in grades 9-12 (graduating classes of 2027-2030) residing and enrolled in school in Apache, Coconino, Gila, Imperial, La Paz, Maricopa, Mohave, Navajo, Orange, Pinal, San Diego, Yavapai or Yuma Counties are invited to apply for this scholarship opportunity.

Students will write essays on an ethical issue that they faced and how they handled it. Essays should not exceed 500 words and include a title in the essay. Essays should analyze what ethics has taught the students and themselves. Note that the most engaging essays often reflect on a meaningful experience or lesson learned in one’s life that focuses on an ethical reflection. Essays should be written by students without the use of AI. Essays written with the assistance of AI will be disqualified from the contest. Essay critique is based on a point system (1-5), with (4) categories.

1. Inclusion of Personal Viewpoints and/or examples (5 points);

2. Relevance to Theme (5 points);

3. Readability & Clarity (5 points);

4. Spelling & Grammar (5 points).

The applications for the 2026 Ethical Torch Scholarship are now open. If you would like to request a paper application, please contact the BBB scholarship team. Recipients will be announced at BBB Torch Awards for Ethics.