2027 AVID Speaker Contest

Prompt #1: Learning About Myself

Sometimes we aren't sure if we can try something new. In our AVID classroom, we learn skills (such as staying organized, asking good questions, and working with partners) that we can also use in all our other classes   and outside of school. These skills help us feel proud and confident.

Think about a time when AVID helped you believe in yourself or helped you try something you didn't think you could do. How did that experience change the way you see yourself? What did you do to keep going, and how does that confidence help you prepare for what you want to do in the future?

Academic Vocabulary: 

• Confidence means believing in yourself.
• Growth means getting better at something over time.

Tips: 

• Start with something you weren’t sure you could do before AVID.
• Share a story about a time you felt proud of yourself.
• Talk about something new AVID helped you learn or do.
• Use details so your listener can picture your experience through your eyes.

Prompt #2: My Future Dreams

It's exciting to think about the future! Maybe you dream of being an artist, a scientist, a politician, a teacher, or something else. In AVID, the things you practice in the classroom (like setting goals, staying organized, and speaking up) can also help you in all your classes and prepare you for what's ahead.

What do you want to be or do when you grow up? How has AVID, both in your classroom and throughout your school day, helped you start getting ready for that dream? Tell us about a time when you didn’t give up, even when something was tough. What happened next, and what did you learn about how to reach your dream?

Academic Vocabulary: 

• Dream means something you hope to do or become.

• Goal means something you work toward.

Tips: 

• Start with a moment at school that made you believe you could reach your dream.

• Describe your dream or goal.

• Share how AVID helped you believe in it or helped you develop the skills to be prepared for it.

• Pick one skill and tell the story of how you practiced it. One story is better than a list.

Prompt #1: Seeing Yourself

We often don't realize how strong or capable we are until we're challenged to grow. In AVID, students practice skills in the AVID Elective   classroom and AVID Excel Elective that also show up throughout the school day in every subject. These strategies can change the way you see yourself, your future, and your role in the world.

Think about how AVID has influenced your school experience, both in your AVID Elective and across your classes. How has AVID helped you discover your confidence, face challenges, and recognize what you can achieve? What can you do now that you couldn’t before?

Academic Vocabulary: 

• Confidence means believing in yourself and your abilities.

• Identity is how you see yourself and what makes you unique.

• Agency means taking ownership of your learning and your choices.

Tips: 

• Start with how you saw yourself before you became an AVID student.

• Name one challenge you took on, like a harder class, and what you did to meet it.

• Share a moment when you realized you were capable of more than you thought.

• Talk about how AVID helped you believe in yourself or set new goals.

• Include details that help your listener understand your journey.

Prompt #2: Making a Difference

AVID helps students develop leadership skills that extend beyond the AVID Elective classroom and into the whole school community. Whether it's practicing collaboration skills in group projects, using tutoring strategies to help a peer, or modeling perseverance during a challenging assignment, AVID provides you the tools to be a role model to others.

Think about a time when the skills   or confidence you built in AVID helped you to help someone else—maybe a classmate in another subject, a younger student, or even someone in your community. How did you make a difference, and what did that experience teach you about leadership?

Academic Vocabulary: 

• Empower means to help someone reach their fullest potential, buildingor the confidence and ability to do something.

• Community is a group of people who live, learn, or work together.

• Agency means taking ownership of your learning and your choices.

Tips: 

• Start with how you saw yourself before you became an AVID student. 

• Tell us what you did, and what changed for the person or group you helped  .

Prompt #3: Life Beyond School

AVID is designed to prepare students for college and careers, but the impact doesn't stop there. The habits and skills practiced in the AVID Elective classroom (such as goal setting  , critical thinking, and self-advocacy) often carry over into the rest of the school day and into life outside of school. These experiences shape your friendships, your goals, and the way you approach challenges.

Think about a time you looked ahead to life after high school  , such as exploring a college or career or planning your next step. How did your AVID skills help you explore that step  , and what do you know now about the path ahead that you didn’t before? What changes have you noticed in yourself, and how will these changes help you succeed beyond school?

Academic Vocabulary: 

• Self-awareness means understanding your own thoughts, feelings, and actions. 

• Resilience means being able to bounce back from challenges. 

Tips: 

• Share one moment when you took a step toward your future and how your AVID skills helped.

• Share a story where AVID helped you outside of school.

• Talk about how AVID skills helped you in real-life situations.

• Reflect on how you've grown as a person.

Prompt #1: How AVID Changed My Practice

AVID educators work together to support students, break down barriers, and create opportunities for success.

Think about how AVID has changed the way you teach, lead, or support students. How has it shaped your classroom culture, your relationships with students, your collaboration with colleagues, or your approach to access and college readiness? How has it changed who you are as a learner and an advocate for students, not just what you do? What are your students able to do as a result?   

Academic Vocabulary: 

• Instructional practice refers to the methods and strategies used to teach. 

• Relational capacity means building strong, trusting relationships with students and colleagues. 

• Collective Educator Agency means educators work together with trust and shared goals to help every student succeed and grow. 

Tips: 

• Start with the educator you were before AVID.
• Share a specific story that shows how your teaching or leadership changed.
• If your colleagues or Site Team were part of it, tell us how you moved together.
• Reflect on how AVID helped you grow professionally and personally.
• Use the AVID College and Career Readiness Framework to ground your story.

Prompt #2: A Student Who Changed Me

Sometimes, a student teaches us something we'll never forget. In AVID, whether through the AVID Elective classroom or through schoolwide strategies, students often surprise us with their resilience, leadership, and creativity.

Think about a student who made a lasting impact on you. What did you learn from them? How does that experience shape the way you build relationships with students and support them in owning their learning, both in your AVID work and across your school community?

Academic Vocabulary: 

• Empathy means understanding and sharing the feelings of others. 

• A defining moment is a time that changes how you think or act. 

Tips: 

• Share what you believed or did before this student changed you.
• Describe the student and the moment that impacted you.
• Reflect on how that experience changed your mindset or approach.
• If possible, share where that student is now and how their journey connects to AVID.

Prompt #3: Looking Ahead

AVID is about building a better future for students and educators. The practices and experiences that begin in the AVID classroom and ripple across the school shape not only student outcomes but also your vision as an educator.

When you think about your career pre-AVID and your career 5 years from now  , how has AVID influenced your goals and the way you imagine your role? What future do you see for yourself, your students, your colleagues, and your school because of your AVID work?

Academic Vocabulary: 

• Vision means imagining what’s possible in the future. 

• Professional growth means improving your skills and leadership over time. 

Tips: 

• Start with where you were before AVID, then look ahead.
• Share one step you took, then the next step you want to take, on your own or with your team.
• Share your hopes and goals for the future.
• Reflect on how AVID has helped you build toward those goals.
• Talk about the legacy you hope to leave as an AVID educator.