Some parents wake up their children saying “good morning” or “rise and shine.” For the last year, Brian B. has awakened daughter, Emily, with civics questions like, “What’s the 18th amendment?”
The helpful dad was quizzing her to prepare her for The National Civics Bee Championship. And, it worked!
On November 12, Emily triumphed, earning first place out of 27 contestants from across the United States. Her prize? A $100,000 college fund to a school of her choice!
Emily fondly recalls the groans those morning study sessions elicited and playfully teases her dad about finding new ways to “annoy” her now that the Civics Bee is over. But the achievement made all the hard work worthwhile.
The Road to Victory
Emily’s journey to the national stage in Washington, D.C., began almost a year earlier. In February, Christina, a family friend and judge, told Emily’s mom, Amber, about the local Civics Bee. She thought of Emily for the contest because the young woman has been advocating for the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act (ELSA) since she was seven years old.
Emily dove into studying, receiving support from her parents and friends.
“My friend, Annabelle, was doing this baking camp with me. Each morning before we went, she would help me study for the Civics Bee.”
Victory Alaska State Civics Bee guaranteed her a spot at nationals. Each stage demanded essays, speeches, and rapid-fire answers to challenging civics questions.
Advocating for ELSA: A Personal Mission
Emily’s essay topic for the State Civics Bee in Alaska was deeply personal: advocating for ELSA, a federal bill ensuring insurance coverage for medically necessary dental care.
“The topic of my essay really kind of gave me a leg up over my other fellow contestants because a lot of the contestants were talking about things that they would do,” Emily said. “But I was talking about things that I have done and things that I am doing. So the topic really was a big component of my speech, and it wasn’t just the deliverance, although I did work pretty hard on that as well. The essay was how I got into the State Bee in the first place.”
The Brubaker family chose to start advocating for ELSA in its early days because Emily was born affected by hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia (HED). It affects her sweat glands, hair, skin and teeth. While she’s grateful to have more baby teeth than others with her condition, she faces future dental surgeries to replace missing adult teeth.
Choosing Between College or Treatment
Amber and Brian joined the National Foundation for Ectodermal Dysplasias (NFED) after a dental x-ray showed a diagnosis that her pediatrician didn’t think possible because it was so rare. She indeed was affected by HED. They attended an NFED Family Conference in 2016 and learned about the significant costs associated with dental treatment and how insurance typically denies benefits. The NFED was just beginning efforts to get federal legislation for benefits.
“When we first heard about ELSA, it was like, ‘Are they kidding?’” Brian said. “Like we’re going to pass a bill in Congress? That’s as hard as passing a bill in Congress!”
Brian says that meeting an NFED mom and ELSA advocate, Jen Steele, at the Conference inspired them to get involved with ELSA.
“It was the second annual ELSA Advocacy day in 2018 and we’re like, should we do that?” Brian said. “By then, we were in touch with the Steele family and they were really into it. We’re like, I guess we could do that, too! And so we did.”
Since that first Advocacy Day on Capitol Hill, Emily and her parents have advocated for ELSA in seven NFED events and eight advocacy days sponsored by the Rare Disease Legislative Advocates.
From Advocacy to Championship
The articulate teen claims she still gets nervous when she talks to U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski from Alaska whom she has met several times. But that experience in sharing her ectodermal dysplasia story with her legislators helped prepare her for her Civics Bee speeches.
She practiced her speech delivery with her dad, refining her public speaking skills and learning to command a microphone, make eye contact, and engage her audience.
At nationals, her preparation paid off. “She knocked it out of the park with her speech,” Brian said proudly.
Victory in Washington, D.C.
Emily was nervous and holding her dad’s hand when the magical moment arrived and she was named the champion.
“I cried, I was so excited,” Emily recalled. “A friend who watched the recording told me that she cried watching, and that was so touching for me. But, I think that I just felt elated.”
The teen honestly admitted that she was also a little relieved. Her long hours of hard work had paid off and were now behind her. She was the national champion! And, she helped her future self with college.
Dreams of MIT and NASA
Many families affected by ectodermal dysplasias have to choose between paying for their dental care and getting a college education. Emily dreams about attending the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and working for NASA.
“I would like to help astronauts get up into space. And so maybe my dream career would be having something to do with engineering or programming the spacecraft that we send out into space or the satellites. And although I don’t know if that field will be changing soon because of AI and programming, but for now, I think that’s what I would like to do.”
But first, Emily has to finish 8th grade! The ever smiling Civic Bee Champion isn’t only civic minded. She plays violin, likes to bake, speaks Spanish, and has enjoyed making friends with other kids affected by skin diseases at Camp Discovery.
Why Advocacy Matters
Emily’s scholarship eases the financial pressure of pursuing higher education, but she knows the fight for ELSA is far from over.
“The reason why I keep advocating is because the bill isn’t passed…When I’m visiting my representative and our senators and their members of staff, they always ask me, why are you advocating? I say that it’s not only incredibly important to me and my family. It’s also a greatly affecting component of other families’ lives across the entire country. Even though this bill affects the minority of people, it greatly impacts those who are affected.”
Emily recognizes that her syndrome led her to learning to advocate and ultimately to the National Civics Bee.
“Even if I didn’t have ectodermal dysplasia, I’m not saying it’s a completely good thing, because, of course, it’s going to affect me a lot more in the future. But, it wouldn’t have connected us with all these good people, and it wouldn’t have allowed us to advocate for ELSA. So, even though it’s not great to have it, because, of course, it makes me not able to sweat, it gives me thin hair and some weird looking teeth, it’s still not a big deal. Having a condition like this kind is part of who I am. And yeah, it kind of helps define me.”
Grateful for a Supportive Community
Emily shared that she thinks the NFED as an organization is a super great idea.
“It’s really cool that there’s like a big group of people out there who have this whole program just dedicated to this rare disease that I have myself,” Emily said.
Brian agrees with his daughter.
“We have so many friends that we’ve met through the NFED, so many families that shared their experiences and have really enriched our lives. And you know, we know other folks in Alaska with rare diseases. Some don’t have a foundation to support them. We really appreciate the NFED.”
Media Star
All of us at the NFED thank Emily for bravely telling her story and advocating for ELSA. If anyone can help us get ELSA passed and astronauts in space, it will be you, Emily! Congratulations on your hard work, perseverance and caring heart!
Celebrate Emily with a Donation to the NFED
Emily’s win has brought her letters from state and local officials and national attention in the media. Check out these other articles:
The Civic Trust Blog: From Alaska to D.C.: Meet the 2024 National Civics Bee Champion
KENI AM 650, The Amy Demboski Show: Story of the Week
Anchorage Daily News: Anchorage middle schooler triumphs in national civic engagement competition
Washington Post: Do you know more civics than an eighth-grader?
ASD Shine Bright Podcast: Episode 24, (National Civics Champion) – Romig MS
Alaska Public Media: Anchorage 8th grader wins first ever National Civics Bee
Your Alaska Link TV: Meet Alaska’s National Civics Bee Champion, Emily
Alaska’s News Source: In Depth Alaska: Civics Bee Winner
Alaska’s News Source: Alaskan middle schooler brings home National Civics Bee prize