National History Day® (NHD), in partnership with Carpenters’ Hall, is thrilled to announce an exciting program for the summer of 2026. The Young People’s Continental Congress (YPCC) will provide an opportunity for student-teacher teams* to study history and civics in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 19–25, 2026. Participants will interact with students and teachers from across the country, explore our nation’s founding, and learn how the ideals of the founding era continue to be debated, discussed, and refined over the last 250 years.
We expect that 2026 will be this program’s final year.
*A student-teacher team consists of one student and one teacher.
In July 2025, we ran the second year of this program with student-teacher teams from 27 U.S. states and territories. See their declaration of aspirations below:
Who can apply:
- To be eligible, students must be enrolled in the tenth or eleventh grade in the 2025/2026 academic year.
- Teachers can teach grades 4-12 from any subject area. School librarians are eligible for this program. Teachers may come from any type of school (public, parochial, charter, private, or homeschool).
The program covers the travel costs for participants (flights, hotels, and meals). Participants are responsible for covering the costs of getting to their home airport or train station, parking, luggage, and incidental expenses.
The selected teams will engage in an online learning program from January to June 2026 to learn about the revolutionary era and engage in dialogue and civic discourse. Teams also agree to share their learning in two community presentations and participate in the NHD National Contest in the 2026/2027 academic year.
Teams need to be available for travel from July 19–25, 2026. West Coast or Pacific teams may need to depart for travel on July 18.
In Philadelphia, potential site visits may include historic sites (Carpenters’ Hall and the Independence National Historical Park), museums (the Museum of the American Revolution and the National Constitution Center), and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, among others. Schedules will be distributed to participants in spring 2026.
There are several components to the application:
- Interested teachers and students need to complete the application form by 11:59 a.m. ET on Friday, November 14, 2025. Within the form, teachers will be asked to upload one PDF file containing the following:
- Teacher resume (two pages maximum);
- Teacher statement of interest in the history of the founding era and civic discourse, including a statement of impact on the teacher’s professional development (one page, double-spaced);
- Teacher statement explaining why they selected this student (one page, double-spaced); and
- Student statement of interest in the history of the founding era and civic discourse, including a statement of impact on the student’s academic goals (one page, double-spaced).
- Please combine all documents into one PDF file to upload to the application document.
- A parent or guardian must complete the parent/guardian permission form to allow the student to be considered for this opportunity.
Thank you for your interest in the 2026 Young People’s Continental Congress.
Applications were accepted until 11:59 a.m. ET on Friday, November 14, 2025. Notifications of acceptance and non-acceptance have been sent to teachers applying with their students for the 2026 program.
Students, please check with your teacher regarding notification of acceptance or non-acceptance into the program. Teachers, please check your spam folder if you have not heard back from us.
This program is a proud partner with:
