The Freedom From Religion Foundation, with the financial backing of individual donors, has collaborated with the Secular Student Alliance (SSA) to select, announce and distribute major secular student activism awards for 2025.

FFRF is pleased to announce this year’s winners of the Al Luneman Student Activist Award are Dustin, Ava and Rafael, who each received $1,000. Additionally, the Cliff Richards Memorial Student Activist Award winners of scholarships reserved specifically for freethinking students going to Historical Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are Sariyah and Donte, who each received $1,000. SSA annually publicizes some of FFRF’s specific student scholarships, along with those of other groups and individuals, provides applicant information, and vets the chosen students, which FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor praises as a “wonderful service to FFRF, other donors and students.” As per SSA policy, only students’ first names are used to protect their identities.

Al Luneman Student Activist Award

Dustin, Lincoln Memorial University
Dustin is a student at Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law, pursuing a Juris Doctor degree with an expected graduation in 2028. With academic interests in constitutional, employment, Title IX and civil law, Dustin plans to practice in Tennessee and beyond, focusing on supporting survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, sex trafficking and other forms of abuse. Dustin also hopes to contribute to law review work on Establishment Clause issues and legal strategies for holding institutions accountable for systemic failures.

Identifying as nonreligious, Dustin’s experiences as a student complainant deepened their appreciation for secular advocacy in protecting religious liberty. Since 2017, Dustin has been active in addressing Establishment Clause violations in public schools and government offices across Tennessee and neighboring states. They have collaborated with the Freedom From Religion Foundation, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the ACLU, American Atheists and the American Humanist Association to push for accountability and uphold constitutional protections. These experiences reinforced their belief that free exercise of religion is a constitutional protection — not a tool for government actors to impose beliefs on others — and strongly influenced their decision to pursue a career in law.

FFRF thanks member Al Luneman for making these scholarships possible.

For more information about this year’s scholarships and student recipients, go to: secularstudents.org/scholarships/2025-recipients

FFRF has a variety of scholarships available to give directly to students for exceptional activism. If you know of any student who is actively helping to uphold state/church separation or fighting for the rights of nonbelievers, please use the form at ffrf.us/nominate.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to promoting the constitutional principle of separation between state and church and educating the public on matters of nontheism. With more than 42,000 members, FFRF advocates for freethinkers’ rights across the globe. For more information, visit ffrf.org.