The United States Mint is giving teachers a chance to bring the 1776 ~ 2026 Emerging Liberty dime into their classrooms as part of America’s 250th anniversary celebration.
Through its Semiquincentennial Sweepstakes, the Mint will award circulating examples of the new dime to 10 educators, with prizes based on the number of students listed on each winning entry.
Educator Sweepstakes Offers Dimes for Classrooms
The sweepstakes is open to legal residents of the 50 states and the District of Columbia who are at least 18 years old and teach K–12 students in public, private, charter, or homeschool settings. Employees of the Mint and Treasury Department, along with their immediate family and household members, are not eligible.
Entries must be submitted through the Mint’s Coin Classroom website (https://kids.usmint.gov/semiquincentennial-sweepstakes) during the sweepstakes period. The official rules list the deadline as May 18 at 11:59 p.m. ET.
No purchase is required, and entries are limited to one per person. The Mint will select 10 winners at random from all eligible entries, with the drawing scheduled on or about May 20. Winners will be notified by email and must respond within 10 days.
Prizes Tied to Emerging Liberty Dime
Each winner will receive one circulating 1776 ~ 2026 Emerging Liberty dime for each student listed on the entry form, up to 50 students.
The Emerging Liberty dime is part of the Mint’s one-year-only circulating coin lineup for America’s 250th anniversary. It is the first dime for circulation since 1946 without President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s portrait. Examples have already appeared in general circulation, and the Mint offered collector rolls and bags on April 17, though both product options are now unavailable.
Other 2026 designs include the Enduring Liberty half dollar and five Semiquincentennial quarters. The quarters honor the Mayflower Compact, issued Jan. 5; the Revolutionary War, issued March 23; the Declaration of Independence, expected June 15; the U.S. Constitution, expected this summer; and the Gettysburg Address, expected this fall.
The Lincoln cent and Jefferson nickel retain their familiar designs but carry the dual date 1776 ~ 2026. Along with Mayflower Compact quarters, the first 2026 Semiquincentennial coins entered circulation on Jan. 5, while later designs are being released throughout the year. Cents are no longer issued for circulation but will be available in upcoming Mint products for collectors.
