South LA students encouraged to enter essay contest



South LA high school students are encouraged to submit essays to the national “Being an American” Essay Contest, sponsored by the Bill of Right’s Institute and the History Channel. Students can win up to $1,000 by answering the question: “How does the Constitution establish and maintain a culture of liberty?” Over 80,000 essays have been submitted in the past, making this Essay Contest the largest high school essay competition. image

Essays must be no more 1,000 words and are judged on a number of criteria including adherence to essay question, originality, organization, writing style, and depth of analysis. The Bill of Rights Institute hosts this contest every year. Founded in 1999, the Bill of Rights Institute is a non-profit educational organization. Their mission is “to educate young people about the words and ideas of America’s Founders, the liberties guaranteed in our Founding documents, and how our Founding principles continue to affect and shape a free society.”

“This contest is unique in that it gives students the opportunity to think about the important Founding principles communicated in our Constitution,” said Dr. Jason Ross, Bill of Rights Institute Vice President of Education Programs. “This contest is vital to helping students see the Founding principles as a meaningful part of the American experiment of self-government.”

South LA students will compete against other high school students in California and others from the “Western Region” of the United States: Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington as well as Guam, American Samoa, and American Armed Forces Schools Abroad (APO). The top three students in each region will be awarded cash prizes. First place winner wins $1,000, while second place wins $500 and third place is awarded $250. The teacher sponsor of each student winner will receive a $100 cash prize.

The deadline for essay submission is December 15, 2011 at 11:59 PST. To submit an essay and find out more information, go here.

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