A.C.E. AWARD PROGRAM

The Accepting the Challenge of Excellence Award {A.C.E.) recognizes high school students who have dramatically changed their attitude and performance sometime during their high school years and now will graduate from high school. These students have often overcome significant physical, emotional, or social obstacles, yet few receive recognition. A partial list of difficulties to overcome could include physical, language, child abuse, delinquency, and/or substance abuse. There are three levels of competition – Club, District, and National.

Why Should Your Club Participate? The A.C.E. Award is a positive program with two essential objectives. First, it helps encourage students to overcome their hardships and get back on track toward a high school diploma. Second, the award recognizes those students who are often overlooked for their accomplishments. This special recognition is a powerful example to all students that hard work and perseverance pay off.

CLUB LEVEL COMPETITION

Participating in the A.C.E. Award program is voluntary. Each Club’s Board must determine its interest, the number of available scholarships it can offer, and the financial means to support the program. Refer to Club guidelines for more details.

DISTRICT LEVEL COMPETITION

Each Club can submit one female and one male candidate from each school in their community. If your candidates are selected as the CA/NV District A.C.E. Award winners, the students must provide a 5″ x 7″ high-quality photo in JPEG format for publicity purposes. The CA/NV District A.C.E. Award submission deadline is Monday, April 15, 2025.

The District winners will receive the A.C.E. Award plaque and a $2,500 scholarship. Students will be honored by attending the annual Convention of the California-Nevada District Exchange Clubs, held in June 7, 2025 in Irvine, California. The winners will be notified of the time and place before June 1, 2025. The winners must attend the District Convention. If a student is selected and cannot participate in the Convention, the first runner-up will become the winner.

Transportation expenses to the Convention and return at $.20 per mile (round-trip), one night (one room) hotel accommodations (room & tax cost only), three (3) tickets for the Friday evening district-sponsored dinner, and three tickets for the A.C.E. Award presentations will be the financial responsibility of the District at no expense to the local sponsoring club. The club chairperson must clearly explain the above financial considerations, and participants must agree with their understanding of these finances.

NATIONAL LEVEL COMPETITION

The CA/NV District A.C.E. Award winners are entered into the National Exchange Club competition. One winner will receive a $15,000 scholarship and plaque. The submission deadline for our district is June 1, 2025.

PROGRAM GUIDELINES

• Chairperson & Committee | Select a Club Chairperson and form a committee.
• Establish Budget | Ask your President what your budget is for this program to determine the number of scholarships you can provide for the current fiscal period.
• Contact Local High Schools | The Chairperson or a committee member contacts your local high schools in your area to extend an invitation to participate in the program and to identify potential candidate(s)—one male and one female from each school.
• Candidate Nomination Application – {Insert Local Club QR Code}
• Counselor’s Instructions – Attached | Please share this with your high school counselors.
• Submission Deadline | Please be sure to include your submission date on the attached Candidate Nomination application packet.

TIMELINE

November 2024 | Provide program packet and nomination form to high school counselors in your area.

January 2025 | Send an email reminder to the counselors on your submission deadline.

March 1, 2025 | Club to send an email reminder to the counselors on the upcoming submission deadline.

March 14, 2025 | All Student Applications must have been submitted to the Club for consideration.

April 15, 2025 | CA/NV District Competition | Clubs to forward winning submissions to the CA/NV District A.C.E. Chair Cynthia Strasmann / Cynthia.Strasmann@gmail.com and fill out the electronic form.

~ Submit one male and one female candidate from each school.

April 2025 – Early May 2025 | Announce your Club‘s honorees. Plan a special recognition for your honorees, inviting their families.

June 1, 2025 | CA/NV District A.C.E. winners are announced and submitted to the National Exchange Club for consideration by the District A.C.E. Chairperson.

June 7, 2025 | CA/NV District A.C.E. winners are honored at the annual District Convention in Irvine, California.

July 9, 2025 | The National A.C.E. winner is honored at the National Convention and awarded $15,000.

SCHOOL COUNSELOR’S INSTRUCTIONS

Please review the following key points to ensure a smooth and successful scholarship process:

1. Distribution of Scholarship Information

• Identify eligible students and provide them with an updated application and instructions.
• Be sure to indicate your submission deadline.
• Guide the student in completing the application accurately and promptly.

2. Verification and Graduation Certification

• Provide a Counselor’s Narrative | SECTION 1 of the Application for each candidate.

~ Not to exceed 500 words

~ Describe in detail the candidate’s challenge, how they overcame it, and the candidate’s outlook for the future.

~ This narrative must be typewritten

• Certify that each candidate is eligible to graduate from high school this year.
• Please ensure each candidate’s application includes the signatures of school officials and parents/guardians.

Note: Emphasize the candidate’s overcoming their problems and outlook for the future. The judges heavily rely on these items when grading each of the candidates.

3. Monitoring and Support

• Monitor the progress of the students you’ve nominated for the award to ensure a timely submission

4. Submission Instructions

• Only on-time applications will be accepted.
• Include a 5″ x 7″ high-resolution jpeg photo of each candidate with the application.
• Candidates submit their application online.

5. Important Dates

• Candidate Submission | {Insert Club‘s Date}
• CA/NV District A.C.E. Luncheon | June 7 2025. *If your student wins at this level.
• National

6. Candidate Instructions and Nomination Form

• See the Downloadable Zip File Above.

CANDIDATE INSTRUCTIONS

Please provide and review the following key instructions with your candidates to ensure a smooth and successful scholarship process:

(1) Important Club Deadline | Candidate submission is March 14th, 2025.

Please give your completed application to your high school counselor before this deadline. Your counselor will forward your application to the Club. Late submissions will not be accepted.

(2) Familiarize Yourself with the Application

If you have questions regarding the application, please contact your counselor.

(3) Nomination Form

• SECTION 1 | Your counselor will complete this section of the application.
• SECTION 2 | Completed by You {Student}

Essay Requirements – Narratives A & B

• (1) Narrative A: Describe the most significant challenge you have overcome in high school that you are most proud of.
• (2) Narrative B: Describe how you will work to make the future a better place to live.

Essay Guidelines:

1. 1. Essays MUST be typewritten for submission.
   2. Essay word count is 250 words or less each.
   3. Your counselor can transcribe your essays if you cannot access a computer.

Note: The better the narratives look and read, the better the final evaluation

(4) Special Recognition | {Insert Date}

You will receive an invitation to our awards luncheon one month before the luncheon date.

(5) Nomination Form | {Insert Local QR Code}

(6) A.C.E. Funding Instructions | Attached

To receive our scholarship award, please review the instructions in the Club Packet.