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Freedom and Opportunity Academic Prizes
Supporting the next generation of scholars dedicated to
freedom and opportunity and encouraging a more diverse intellectual environment on campus.
About
The Freedom and Opportunity Academic Prizes support and encourage the research, publications, and programs of faculty who are aligned with The Heritage Foundation’s mission at colleges, universities, and seminaries throughout the United States. The Prizes recognize and provide financial awards to faculty at higher education institutions for their original research as well as for their projects and programs that explore Heritage’s priority issues and broader issues around freedom and opportunity.
Prize winners receive financial awards of $15,000 in recognition of their past accomplishments, their current work, and their future promise in the academy. Recipients of the Freedom and Opportunity Academic Prizes participate in a Summer Colloquium and Workshop in Washington, D.C. with leading academics, scholars from Heritage, and their fellow Prize winners.
See the press release announcing the winners of the fourth round of the Freedom and Opportunity Academic Prizes here.
Why the Academic Prizes?
The academic environment is particularly challenging for faculty who wish to research, publish, teach, and develop programs in areas that explore economic freedom, the dignity of the person, human flourishing, constitutional governance, national sovereignty, and other issues related to freedom, opportunity, and traditional American values. Moreover, funding opportunities for such academic pursuits are increasingly scarce.
Recognizing the importance of critical thinking and thoughtful research on these issues and the impact such work has on its own policy initiatives and the broader public debate, The Heritage Foundation is committed to investing in the academic community.
Through the Freedom and Opportunity Academic Prizes, The Heritage Foundation encourages the robust exploration and development of ideas that sharpen our own scholars’ thinking, support the work of courageous faculty on often-hostile college campuses, grow the network of researchers and intellectuals, form new partnerships, and advance Heritage’s vision of building an America where freedom, opportunity, prosperity, and civil society flourish.
Read the press release here.
Guidelines and Process
GUIDELINES
Applicants must be full-time or adjunct faculty at colleges, universities, or seminaries in the United States who are actively engaged in research, writing, programming, or course development that relate to:
- The American Family
- The Dignity of Work
- The Future of Free Enterprise
- American Heritage & Citizenship
- National Security
Applicants are also welcome to apply if their work addresses broader questions around economic freedom, dignity of the person, human flourishing, constitutional governance, and traditional American values.
Additional Considerations
- Priority will be given to applicants whose scholarship has relevance to current policy debates and those who do not have other external funding sources for the upcoming academic year.
- Applicants who are actively engaged in extracurricular activities that build community among academics are eligible for an additional award of $5,000.
Prize awards are $15,000, and funding will be directed to individual faculty members rather than their home institutions. Winners are also invited to participate in a Summer Colloquium and Workshop in Washington, D.C. with fellow Prize Winners.
Read about our 2025 Freedom and Opportunity Prize Winners here, our 2024 Prize Winners here, and our 2023 Prize Winners here.
2026 Freedom and Opportunity Academic Prize Winners:
- Mark Bauerlein, PhD, Visiting Professor, Department of English, Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture, and Society, The Ohio State University
- Bradley J. Birzer PhD, Professor of History and Russell Amos Kirk Chair in American Studies, Department of History, Hillsdale College
- Bryan Cutsinger, PhD, Assistant Professor of Economics, College of Business, Florida Atlantic University
- Marguerite Duane, MD, MHA, MSPH, FAAFP, Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine, Georgetown University; Director, Center for Fertility Awareness Education and Research, and Associate Professor, Restorative Reproductive Medicine, Nausti College of Osteopathic Medicine, Duquesne University
- William Edmund Fahey, PhD, President, Thomas More College of Liberal Arts
- Angela Franks, PhD, Associate Professor of Theology, School of Theology and Religious Studies, The Catholic University of America
- Joseph Griffith, PhD, William Blackstone Professor of Law & Society and Assistant Professor, Director of the Classical Learning Program, Ashland University
- Carson Holloway, PhD, Professor of Political Science and Department Chair, University of Nebraska at Omaha
- Jeffrey Hoopes, PhD, Professor and Harold Q. Langenderfer Scholar of Accounting and Thomas Willis Lambeth Distinguished Chair in Public Policy, Kenan-Flagler Business School, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Andrew Johnston, PhD, Associate Professor of Economics, School of Civic Leadership, University of Texas at Austin
- Wilfred M. McClay, PhD, Victor Davis Hanson Chair in Classical History and Western Civilization, Department of History, Hillsdale College
- Randy Wayne, PhD, Associate Professor of Plant Biology, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University
- John D. Wilsey, PhD, Professor of Church History and Philosophy and Chair, Church History Department, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
- Matthew Wright, PhD, Associate Professor, Torrey Honors College, Biola University
APPLICATION AND REVIEW PROCESS
Applications for the 2026 Academic Prizes are now closed.
Applications for the 2027 Prize round will open December 2026.
We encourage you to reach out to see if you would be a fit for the Academic Prizes. Inquiries may be submitted via the interest form.
As part of the application, applicants will be asked to provide, among other things, the following:
- A current curriculum vitae (10 pages or less)
- A brief description of your past and current scholarship and its potential policy applications, including a brief description of any extracurricular activities
- A writing sample relevant to your application (please limit to 25 pages or less)
- A list of two or more references who can speak to the quality of your scholarship and future potential
Additional information may be requested if needed for further evaluation, and interviews may be conducted as part of the application review and evaluation process.
After submission, applications will be reviewed by Heritage staff and advisors, and top applications will be shared with an Academic Advisory Committee that includes scholars from across the country.
Applications for the 2027 Prize round will open in December 2026. Inquiries may be submitted via our interest form here.
