In honor of the 200th anniversary of the Greek War for Independence, which will be celebrated globally in 2021, the St. Photios National Shrine is proud to announce the theme for its annual essay contest, commemorating the great connection shared between the nations of Greece and the United States. Participants must be age 13-19 and the maximum word count is 1000. A single essay will be selected as the winner by a committee and will receive a $1,000 prize. Deadline to submit is December 16, 2020.

The St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival provides Greek Orthodox teenagers the opportunity to write and talk about their faith. The Oratorical Festival Program begins at the parish level and is divided into two divisions: Junior Division for students in grades 7–9 and Senior Division for student in grades 10–12. Two finalists in each district division represent the district at the Metropolis Oratorical Festival. The top speaker in each metropolis division is then selected to participate in the Archdiocese Finals.