Educating the next generation

Two RSL Australia Scholarships are awarded each year to children and grandchildren of veterans to assist them to undertake tertiary education in Australia. The Scholarships ($4,000 each per year) continue for up to three years. The Scholarships can be applied for through the Australian Veterans’ Children Assistance Trust.

The RSL pays tribute to respected soldier and leader Captain Reginald Walter Saunders with a scholarship in his name. Each year two $4,000 scholarships are awarded to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Island students who plan to use their skills or profession to benefit their community. The Scholarships can be applied for through, and are administered by AVCAT.

RSL Australia supports the Simpson Prize, a national competition for Year 9 and 10 students focussing on the service of Australians in World War I. One winner and one runner-up from each State and Territory participate in a three-day program in Canberra and travel to key historical and commemorative sites across Australia.

The RSL and Schools Remember ANZAC Commemoration facilitated by RSL NSW has been in place for over 70 years. It aims to educate primary and secondary school students about Australia’s military history, whilst paying respect to the service and sacrifice of servicemen and women of the Australian Defence Force.

RSL Queensland launched Draw to Remember to engage primary school students in creative learning experiences while reflecting on the significance of Remembrance Day. This successful program is due to be rolled out nationally.

RSL Queensland launched Postcards of Honour, a creative ANZAC Day learning and commemoration activity for primary school students. Throughout Australia’s military history, postcards and letters have offered vital support to those on active duty. By taking part in Postcards of Honour students can show a past/present service person that they support them and appreciate their service.

RSL Queensland has launched an online education portal that provides free teaching resources to help with lesson planning, enhance learning with engaging multimedia content, and link classroom activities with the lived experience of the thousands of veterans who make up RSL Queensland’s membership. All materials have been developed by curriculum specialists to ensure they are accurate, reliable and aligned with the national curriculum.

The State RSL Anzac Eve Youth Vigil in Adelaide is a youth inspired activity which has been a central part of ANZAC Day commemorations in Adelaide since 1999. Cadets and members of other volunteer emergency service organisations hold vigils at key commemorative sites. It has become the first ceremony of remembrance for ANZAC Day in South Australia as it is held the night before ANZAC Day.

RSL Queensland proudly supports the Premier’s Anzac Prize which sees young people continue to learn and recognise how service people have contributed to making Australia what it is today. It is through this robust program that students get to see first-hand the places where the ANZACs fought, particularly the Western Front, and gain a better understanding of what the soldiers experienced all those years ago.

The Premier's Anzac Spirit School Prize provides young South Australians with the opportunity to examine and empathise with the remarkable sacrifices of South Australian service men and women during the 20th century. The prize is open to all South Australian students in Years 9 and 10. Students who are awarded the prize are invited to participate in a state government fully funded study tour, accompanied by a representative of RSL SA

The Frank MacDonald MM Memorial Prize is a joint initiative between RSL Tasmania and the State Government of Tasmania. It honours Australia’s last surviving World War 1 veteran and commemorates and preserves the meaning of the ANZAC spirit. It is open to all Tasmanian Year 9 students and interest in participating has continued to grow over the past 20 years.