From a Last-Minute Essay to a National Stage: How Maanha Is Advancing Education Equity

What started as an essay submitted just hours before a deadline has grown into a year-long civic effort, national recognition, and ongoing conversations with state and local leaders.

Maanha, a freshman attending Washington Virtual Academies (WAVA), was named the third-place national winner of the 2025 National Civics Bee. She earned a $15,000 prize after advancing through local and state rounds to the national competition in Washington, D.C. Her work has since led to meetings with the Mayor of Seattle, as well as the Governor and Attorney General of Washington State. This placed her among a small group of students whose civic research has reached top state leaders.

Examining Education Inequality in Washington State

Maanha’s award-winning proposal, The Washington Initiative for Student Equity (Project WISE), examines disparities in public education funding across Washington. Her research focused on how the state’s regressive tax structure affects school resources and student opportunity. This often creates a stark difference between districts separated by little more than geographic boundaries.

Personal Experience Shapes Civic Research

Maanha’s interest in education equity is shaped by personal experience. After a family move, she encountered significant differences between school environments. Her experience involved transitioning from a small, student-centered elementary school to a larger, under-resourced setting. Seeking an alternative that would allow her to continue her education while pursuing in-depth civic research, she enrolled in an online public-school program.

Balancing School and a National Competition

That structure allowed her to manage the increasing demands of the Civics Bee alongside her coursework. As the competition progressed, Maanha balanced interviews, writing, research, and travel while remaining academically engaged.

A Year-Long Process From Local to National

Over more than a year, Maanha conducted surveys, met with lawmakers, nonprofits, and elected officials, and analyzed funding disparities between school districts. Her work advanced through multiple phases of the Civics Bee. This included in-person presentations at local chambers of commerce, a state-level competition, and a nationally televised, game-show-style finale hosted at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Watch her presentation from the national livestream recording.

As Maanha explains in her proposal, “Project Wise relies on a simple truth. When equality of opportunity is uneven, democracy itself is unfinished. We have flipped this coin for far too long. It’s time to stop gambling with potential and give every child a fair shot at a brighter future.”

Continuing Civic Engagement Beyond the Podium

While the national award marked a major milestone, Maanha’s civic involvement did not end with the competition. She continues to be involved in the civics club at her school and plans to start a high school-level civics club in her upcoming freshman year. She authored two forthcoming articles with the Association of Washington Business and The Carnegie Reporter. Maanha continues to develop new projects, building on her research into education equity.

Elevating Student Voices in Policy Conversations

At a time when students are often absent from policy discussions, Maanha’s experience illustrates how young people can engage meaningfully with complex civic issues when given access to resources and opportunities. Her work continues to contribute to broader conversations about education funding and equity in Washington State, demonstrating the impact student-led research can have beyond the classroom.

Interested in learning more about how to exceed academically while also following your passion? Learn more here.

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