First Amendment Award Event

2026 First Amendment Awards Event

The First Amendment Award is an annual honor presented by the Loeb School to recognize New Hampshire individuals or organizations that have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to defending, protecting, or exercising the freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

Our First Amendment Awards Event is Monday, September 21, 2026, at the NH Institute of Politics, Saint Anselm College.

The evening includes:

• 5 p.m. – VIP Reception

• 5:30 p.m. – Networking

• 6:30 p.m. – Awards Program

This year's event will also recognize Howard Brodsky, chair and co-founder of CCA Global Partners in Manchester, with the Quill & Ink Award for advancing First Amendment education in the Granite State. He and his late son, Jeffrey, co-founded the annual Brodsky Prize for Excellence in High School Journalism in 2018 to encourage journalistic innovation and enterprise in the Granite State.

Sponsorship opportunities are available. Tickets will go on sale in early August.

The First Amendment Award recipient is chosen by an independent panel of judges from nominations submitted by the public. This year’s judges are: Melanie Plenda, executive director of the Granite State News Collaborative and 2025 winner of Quill & Ink award; retired NH Supreme Court Justice Richard Galway; Attorney Gregory Sullivan, a Loeb School Board of Trustees member and president of the New England First Amendment Coalition; and New Hampshire Public Radio Senior Reporter Annmarie Timmins.