How to Host Ben Shapiro at Your School
Young America’s Foundation is here to make activism easy, whether you are the leader of a Young Americans for Freedom chapter or of another student organization on campus.
We will walk you through the entire process of hosting Ben Shapiro (or one of our other 70+ speakers) on your campus, and we will provide your organization with both logistical and financial support to ensure your event is a success.
Here is what you need to do in order to apply to host Ben Shapiro on your campus:
1: Requirements Needed in Order to Host Ben Shapiro
Given the limited number of engagements that Ben can accept for the fall, the following requirements MUST be met in order for your school to be considered for an event.
1. Young America’s Foundation can cover a substantial portion of Ben’s fee. However, we do require that we be the sole national sponsor of Ben’s campus events.
2. Venue must be able to accommodate between 2,000-2,500 students and community members.
3. The school must allow for the event to be streamed live by Young America’s Foundation and allow for a professional photographer to cover the lecture
4. The venue must be accessible to Young America’s Foundation staff and streaming crew all day during the event.
5. The event must be free and open to the public
6. All announcements regarding tickets (if needed) and promotional items must be approved by Young America’s Foundation in advance.
7. Proposal submitted to Young America’s Foundation
**If at any time one of these requirements are not met or reneged on by the school, Young America’s Foundation reserves the right to re-evaluate the lecture’s feasibility.**
2: Solicit your school for funding.
Please submit this initial inquiry form for information on Ben Shapiro’s honorarium. Then file a request for funding with your school’s student government and or student activity committee. Please note that in order to be considered for a fall date, you must submitting your proposal as a Word doc or PDF with the information as outlined in step 3 below.
Many schools are happy to underwrite a parade of liberal speakers on campus, so some funding should rightly go towards conservative speakers. You should request the full amount in your school application. However, we are aware that most funding boards will not provide the full amount. Therefore, Young America’s Foundation will work to provide the balance of the funding you may not receive from your school.
We realize some schools require a tentative date from a speaker in order to receive funding. However, given the high amount of requests Shapiro receives, giving a tentative date of availability will not be possible.
3: Submit your proposal to Young America’s Foundation
Once your funding has been allocated, we ask that you submit a proposal to Young America’s Foundation as a Word document or PDF. Please keep in mind that you will be competing with other schools to host Ben Shapiro on campus. For the 2018-2019 school year, we received more than 1,500 inquiries for Ben to speak on just twelve campuses, so be sure to make your proposal compelling and underscore your club’s ability to ensure the event will be a success.
Each proposal should include:
a. Information on your club’s past activities and record of success
b. Why Ben Shapiro should speak at your school
c. Suggested dates that will work for your club. Be sure to check your school’s athletic and academic calendar to ensure the dates you select do not conflict with midterms, sporting, or other campus events
d. Expected attendance and suggested venue for the event. Images and/or a venue floor plan are helpful to include.
e. The amount you are offering toward Ben Shapiro’s honorarium
f. How much of the honorarium you are requesting Young America’s Foundation cover
g. A tentative schedule for the event including the suggested time of the lecture, club dinner, book signing or reception.
4. Deadlines for applications
All applications must be emailed to Patrick Coyle by close of business on Wednesday, May 15, 2019.
