new york times creative writing contest

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Our Second Annual Student Editorial Contest: Write About an Issue That Matters to You

Update, Feb. 29, 2016 | Our Third Annual Student Editorial Contest has been announced. Deadline is March 29.

Update, April 15 | Winners have been announced!

Last February we added a new contest to our annual lineup , and were astonished when nearly 5,000 entries — the most we’ve ever received — poured in.

This year teachers began asking in September if our Student Editorial Contest would be back, so we’re delighted to announce it today.

Below, an overview, the rules, some resources that might help and a few ideas from teachers who taught with the contest last year.

Good luck: Having received editorials on everything from standardized testing to the downside of artificial turf and Barbie as a feminist last year, we can’t wait to see what we’ll get this year. You have until March 10 to post below.

An Overview

• Does Technology Make Us More Alone?
• Do Teachers Assign Too Much Homework?
• If Football Is So Dangerous to Players, Should We Be Watching It?

Every day during the school year we invite teenagers to share their opinions about questions like these — on topics from cheerleading to police tactics — and hundreds do, posting arguments, reflections and anecdotes to our Student Opinion feature.

With this, our second annual Student Editorial Contest, we’re asking you to channel that enthusiasm into something a little more formal: short, evidence-based persuasive essays like the editorials The New York Times publishes every day.

The challenge is pretty straightforward. Choose a topic you care about, gather evidence from both New York Times and non-New York Times sources, and write a concise editorial (450 words or fewer) to convince readers of your point of view.

Because editorial writing at newspapers is a collaborative process , you can write your entry as a team effort, or by yourself. When you’re done, post it in the comments section below by March 10, 2015, at 7 a.m. Eastern.

With our contest partner, the Center for News Literacy at Stony Brook University, we will then use this rubric to select winners to publish on The Learning Network.

As teachers know, the persuasive essay has long been a staple of high school education, but the Common Core standards seem to have put evidence-based argumentative writing on everybody’s agenda. You couldn’t ask for a more real-world example of the genre than the classic newspaper editorial — and The Times publishes, on average, four of them a day.

So what issue do you care about? Climate change ? Sexism ? Government surveillance ? You decide. Then use the facts to convince us that you’re right.

Contest Resources

How to Write an Editorial

The New York Times’s editorial page editor Andrew Rosenthal provides seven tips for writing an effective editorial.

To help with this challenge, Andrew Rosenthal, The Times’s editorial page editor, made the video above, in which he details seven pointers. And we published a lesson plan, “ For the Sake of Argument: Writing Persuasively to Craft Short, Evidence-Based Editorials ,” that offers additional teaching ideas. (Update: We now have a lesson plan to help students develop effective counterarguments .)

We have also culled 200 prompts for argumentative writing from our Student Opinion feature to help inspire you, though, of course, you are not limited to those topics. (Update: We now have a new collection of 301 prompts for argumentative writing that includes all of the previous questions, plus 101 new ones.)

We also encourage you to look at both our comments on last year’s winners and the winning essays themselves . They can serve as excellent models, and they cover topics ranging from the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition to the War on Drugs .

Contest Rules

1. Use at least one Times source. You can write your editorial about any topic, as long as you use at least one source from The New York Times. That should pretty much open the whole world to you since you may be surprised how much you can find in The Times .

Be advised that NYTimes.com has a digital subscription system in which readers have free access to 10 free articles each month, but after that you will be asked to become a digital subscriber. However, all Times articles linked from The Learning Network, as well as The Learning Network itself, are free . That means you can use any of the articles we have linked to on this blog for the editorial contest without exceeding the 10-article limit. (The Times has also introduced a new K-12 subscription plan which covers digital access schoolwide.)

2. Use at least one non-Times source. Make sure, however, that the source you use is a reliable one.

3. Always cite your sources. If you found evidence in an article on the Internet, link to it. If you used a print source, state the title and author, linking to additional information about it if possible. If you interviewed an expert, state his or her name and position. Readers (and judges) should always know where you got your evidence.

4. Be concise. The editorial must be no more than 450 words. Your list of sources is separate, however, and does not count as part of your 450-word limit.

5. Have an opinion. Editorials are different from news articles because they try to persuade readers to share your point of view. Don’t be afraid to take a stand.

6. Write your editorial by yourself or with a group. If you are working as a team, just remember to submit all of your first names and last initials when you post your entry. However, please submit only one editorial per student. If you’re submitting as part of a team, you should not also submit as an individual.

7. Be original and use appropriate language. Write for a well-informed audience, but include enough background information to give context. Be careful not to plagiarize: Use quotation marks around lines you use verbatim from another source, or rephrase and cite your source.

8. Submissions must be from students who are 13 to 19 years old, though students can come from anywhere in the world. No last names please, but an initial is fine, as is a school or class code of some type. (For example, “Ethan G. CHS112.”)

9. All entries must be submitted by March 10, 2015, at 7 a.m. Eastern time as comments on this post. If you have questions about the contest, please feel free to post them in the comments section as well, and we’ll answer you there.

10. We will use this rubric (PDF) to judge editorials. The top editorials, as judged by The Times and the Center for News Literacy at Stony Brook University, will be featured on The Learning Network. (As with all our contests, if you win, you can then follow these steps to make sure we can use your last name.)

How Teachers Taught With This Contest in 2014

As we were judging the contest last year, we asked teachers who participated to share a bit about how they wove it into their curriculum. Here are some of the responses:

Shane Bybee

We built a sort of mini-research assignment around this contest. We used the video included to give students some information and showed them how to navigate the resources, then let them get to work. Two days in class to facilitate the technological portion of the assignment equitably and allow students to write and get feedback, plus a day to let them explore the resources and topic. Some time in between to percolate, and we saw fantastic results.

We were already working on the essay as argument, so it was easy to weave in your resources with our own. We worked in small groups to come up with compelling topics or issues meaningful to each student. In small groups again we had students write questions to each writer- what would you like to know about this issue. We talked about the difference between opinion and facts, showed them your editorial video clip, taught them easybib, talked about reliable resources, and set them loose to research. Once the kids had first drafts, they read them to peers and to teachers for feedback– this is what you did well, these are the questions we have, and here’s a suggestion. Students revised and edited until they had a best draft. We are continuing these pieces by having the students convert their writing to a video or a TEDTalk.

We brainstormed by exploring websites like ProCon.org, NewsELA, and the list of 200 argumentative topics on here. Students came up with a list of 3 topics that if someone brought up they would get heated about. We held some informal discussions in small groups so that students could figure out which topic they truly cared the most about. They really enjoyed playing devil’s advocate and getting each other fired up. Then the most difficult part of the unit came up. Before they could draft their editorials expressing their own opinions, they had to first write it from the opposition’s standpoint. They were not happy about this assignment, but quickly realized the value in truly understanding the other side of the story. Having done research on both perspectives, they were ready to begin drafting. Once the editorials were done, each student read his or her editorial to the class and the gates were opened for discussion. It took us over a week to get through each student, but it was probably one of the most meaningful weeks we’ve had this year.

Shery Kearney

I used the contest two different ways–as a collaborative research assignment with 10th graders. Students were paired together with others who had differing opinions on a controversial issue. They had to consider each argument and find research to back their claims. Together they had to decide, as an editorial board would, the stronger argument then address the counterargument. With my AP students, the editorial fit into a larger research assignment they had already begun. They first found a TED talk that caught their attention and brainstormed a list of topic for research that were generated by their viewing of the talk. They had to consider technological, entertainment, and design aspects of their topics by including films, music, infographics and more in their blogs on the topics. Then they had to explore non-fiction and fiction (short and long) connected to the topic, articles that included multi-perspectives and opinions (often from Room for Debate) the history of the topic, government and policy actions, and important quotations related to the subject. The opinion piece of their research was the writing they posted to the contest. In April they will present their final portfolios of their writing and research to the class using their blogs. The presentations will serve as a way to “stack ammo,” a term we use from Eminem, to prepare for the argument portion of the AP Exam. The research was an authentic part of the research process for them.

Update: Feb. 5:

@NYTimesLearning Are you doing the editorial contest again? I hope so! My students loved it! Also, I created a unit in it @BetterLesson . — Lindsay Thompson (@FortOsage_MsT) February 5, 2015

We heard from teacher Lindsay Thompson via Twitter that she has created an entire unit inspired by our contest. You can find it here, on Better Lesson .

Good luck and have fun. We welcome your questions and comments in case we have somehow omitted details that might be useful. Let us know how we can help, below.

Comments are no longer being accepted.

The Pink and Blue Rule

Gender discrimination is not okay. Although boys and girls are different, that doesn’t mean that preferences define your gender.

“You’re acting like a girl” Is a common insult for boys in middle school and high school, and sometimes long before then. Imagine a boy, walking down the hall to class. The boy in your head is probably wearing pants or shorts, right? What if that boy was wearing a dress, or a skirt? At what point did these things become something that only girls were allowed to wear?

In the 1800s, babies of both genders wore long white dresses. Nowadays, if a boy walked down a street wearing a dress, people would probably say that he was weird, or strange. In the 1700s, there was a famous painter named Gainsborough, from the UK. Many people know about his famous painting entitled “Blue Boy”, but little know about it’s companion painting, entitled “Pink Boy”.In the picture, a boy is the center of the painting. He is wearing a pink fancy dress, “So it seems, in the 1700’s, the modern stereotypes had not yet been established”(Hue Color Consulting: Why is Blue for Boys and Pink For Girls?). Pink used to be a color designated for boys, because red was considered a strong color in christianity, and pink considered it’s “little brother”. Blue was considered a girls color, because it is associated with virgin mary, therefore feminine.

There are many stereotypes built around girls or boys wearing clothes “for the other gender”. For example, wearing “girl clothes” is considered “girly”, and many other people would make fun of those that wear “girl clothes” because boys want to be considered “manly.”

These clothing stereotypes have been defied by brave students at school, but teachers are not always supportive of these ideas, for example, “‘A cross-dressing Houston senior was sent home because his wig violated the school’s dress code rule that a boy’s hair may not be ‘longer than the bottom of a regular shirt collar.’ In October, officials at a high school in Cobb County, Ga., sent home a boy who favored wigs, makeup and skinny jeans. In August, a Mississippi student’s senior portrait was barred from her yearbook because she had posed in a tuxedo.’” (NY Times: Can a Boy Wear a Skirt to School?)

A very long time ago, men wore wigs, dresses, skirts, and jewelry. Girls were covered from head to toe, as was the fashion at the time. Nowadays, clothes are actually gender neutral, but society labels everything, so the once gender neutral clothes became “boy clothes” and “girl clothes”. We are all born naked. We shouldn’t discriminate by what we choose to wear after that.

I will be turning 13 years old on March 12th, three days after the submission deadline. Can I still submit an editorial?

Hi Yujing — I know this sounds ridiculously strict, but since you’re not technically 13 when you’ll be submitting, I’m afraid not. (This isn’t just our arbitrary rule, it’s based on COPPA laws .) Please consider entering next year, though, since I’m sure we’ll continue this contest, and thanks for your interest in it now. — Katherine

Does the title count in the 450 word count limit? Do students need to submit a separate works cited list?

Carla, The title does not count as part of the 450 word limit. And we ask that students cite their sources, but don’t stipulate how they cite them. Some students choose to list their sources at the bottom of their editorial; others choose to use in-text citations. Either way is fine. – Michael

The Lottery Curse

Jack Whittaker was your average American, until he won the $315 million Powerball in 2002. Surprised by the sudden climb in his income, Jack was very happy and gave millions to charity, including $14 million to start his own foundation. Later, Jack was overwhelmed by the money and ended up in many unpleasant situations. His briefcase worth $545,000 was stolen, he had multiple break-ins at his home, and was charged with two DUIs. After five years, Jack had spent most of his money and was extremely unhappy. He told reporters “ I wish I’d torn that ticket up (Adams)”. You may think winning the lottery is a one way ticket to happiness with no financial worries, but this isn’t always the case. Two percent of all lottery winners are going through many financial and personal struggles, referred to as “the lottery curse.” (Camelot Group PLC). Stories of “lottery curse” victims are tragic, but they can easily be solved. A plausible solution is the winner having a solid plan for the future. A solid plan would help future winners learn how to spend money wisely and control spendings. They could plan when they’re buying a new house, car, etc. and know their yearly spendings. “Those who don’t have clear life goals are more likely to feel overwhelmed and fumble with the money” said Steven Danish, a psychology professor (Landau). Feeling overwhelmed and stressed will lead you to spend more, although being sure and confident will help you spend wisely. A solid plan and knowing how to spend your earnings wisely can reduce stress and give you the necessary confidence. Finally, you need to surround yourself with supportive family and friends. These friends and family can help people like Jack be less-stressed. If you feel overwhelmed and stressed, your family will give you advice and be there to catch you when you fall. Susan Bradley, a financial planner, said ”If you don’t have someone to help you can go through extraordinarily large amounts of money and be in debt.” (Bernard). Your family and friends would help you stay out of debt and control your spendings. Also, knowing that someone can help you is reassuring and gives you self-confidence with your current situation. These solutions could be extremely useful to “lottery curse” victims and help prevent future victims. Winning the lottery can be a good thing and a bad thing. Only you can determine it. Spending your winnings wisely and having supportive family members will make you happy and satisfied. Frivolously spending your winnings without a plan will make you stressed and unhappy. Being happy and pleased is very important, but it can’t be bought. Once again, money can’t buy your happiness.

The Gun Epidemic

“…the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” It’s written in the United States constitution, stating American citizens have every right to use a gun to defend themselves. But when our founding fathers wrote this amendment, they had the safety of the American citizens in mind. However, in the modern era, guns are being used to kill us, the American citizens, rather than protect us. Gun control has been a very controversial topic, however the statistics have proven continuously that guns are used more for offending than defending. Granted, guns are part of our constitution and it’s okay for people to own them, but is it reasonable for people to own five+ and use them for harm?

The answer’s up to you, but gun violence is out of hand. An average of 289 people – 20 of them being children and teenagers – are shot daily in the US (Kristof), the “land of the free and home of the brave.” It doesn’t seem very brave that we’re killing each other. Our government needs to get a grip and fix this, and as a public we need to fight against this. Terrorism outside the US is all over the news, however you rarely hear of terrorism within, such as the Sandy Hook school shooting, and the 74 shootings after (Fantz, Knight, and Wang).

A solution for this unfortunate situation is that we need to tighten down on selling guns, rather than banishing them completely. If we don’t have guns, we wouldn’t have a second amendment. Also, if somebody managed to get a gun and wanted to use it for harm, the law abiding citizens would have nothing to protect themselves with. So rather than banning guns completely, we should put more restrictions as to who can own a gun. The government should prohibit selling to any person with unstable mental conditions, along with background checks on the buyer and the immediate family. Guns that require fingerprints to fire are already invented, but people aren’t buying or selling them (NY Times: Smart Guns Save Lives, so Where Are They?). Also, many states do not require Concealed Weapon Permits, which could allow more people to get their hands on guns (“Concealed Carry Permit Info”).

Guns and defense come with a good intent, but an intent that is also taken advantage of. Our government seems oblivious to the facts. We need to open their eyes and put a stop to the 289 shootings. The worst part? Many of them could have been preventable with these restrictions. United we stand, divided we fall, and at the moment it seems we are about to topple over. Maybe we have to take the guns away to lighten the load and “form a more perfect union… and ensure domestic tranquility.”

Privacy and the Paparazzi

Imagine this: you are a celebrity who has just made it in Hollywood. Everything seems to be going right in your life and all of the sudden, your personal information is leaked. Passwords, pictures, and even your phone number. You think that this must be a mistake, that this can’t be happening to you. You thought that you would never be hacked. And then it hits you: no one, especially no celebrity, is safe from the invasion of privacy that occurs when you are hacked. In the past, there have been many car accidents and even fatalities caused by celebrity-obsessed paparazzi. Reckless driving to escape the paparazzi is one of the main causes of these deaths. Also, there are many paparazzi that will run across a road full of moving cars, just to snap a picture of a celebrity. The death of Princess Diana in 1997 opened our eyes to the dangers of paparazzi and the tragedies they cause. Paparazzi don’t just cause misfortune in driving. Over the years, with new technology emerging, paparazzi have mastered the “art” of hacking. Just a few celebrities that have been hacked are Jennifer Lawrence, Kim Kardashian, and Rihanna. Although they face fines if they are caught, the paparazzi hack anyway. The obsession with celebrities and their private lives is what encourages paparazzi and it must end. If we stop encouraging paparazzi, they will back off and the amount of tragedies caused by them will drastically decrease (Zissou). When paparazzi hack a celebrity, they invade the privacy that is entitled to them. This is an abuse of technology and a use of computer skills for reasons that are morally wrong. This abuse of technology is especially relevant in the United States, the country that faces the highest levels of identity theft and data breaches in the world (Rotenberg and Fleisher). There needs to be stricter laws on privacy for celebrities. For example, there needs to be larger fines for reckless driving, especially if it was caused from chasing a celebrity. If there were strict laws and policies that were enforced properly, these deaths and leaks would never happen in the first place. Although some may argue that these laws might interfere with the constitution and our freedom of speech and press, this right only goes so far. This invasion of privacy is a violation of human rights that we all are entitled to. Although you may not expect it, you could be the next one that is hacked because in this modernized world full of technology, no one is safe from anything (Zissou).

Obesity: Risks, Factors, and Solutions

Ever thought of weighing 500 pounds?! Or, here’s a rephrase, having to walk through a door sideways? People have tried, they really have, but are these strategies harmful, hurtful? The answer is yes. Although many have attempted weight-loss, results aren’t showing until far into the future causing individuals to choose quicker – also known as dangerous – methods. Since obesity has been introduced to society as a huge threat to health, people are establishing stereotypical ways on how to lose pounds. There are countless ways trying to lose weight at a “faster pace” has failed. In real life and on the internet, many articles and ads recommend individuals – especially women – to not eat because eating leads to a fat body (“Obesity Facts and Figures”). What these poor women don’t recognize is that not eating causes low blood sugar. Along with that, it causes confusion, personality changes, blurred vision, seizures, slow metabolism, and danger if exposed to over the counter medications such as Tylenol (“Obesity Facts and Figures”). Because not eating has high risks and slow results, people have taken on a second approach, which unfortunately, has also failed. Now damage has really been done by putting Orlistat, Lorcaserin, and other medications into digestive systems, which really doesn’t matter at all because they’re just a few little pills in a small little bottle that work at the speed of lightning and encourage heart attack, stroke, and liver destruction (“What are the Dangers”). Now is the time to ask, well how then – can obesity be controlled in the safest yet fastest way? Number one, balance energy inputs (meaning calorie intake) with outputs also known as exercise. Second, eat healthy and in proportion. 50% fruits and vegetables, 25% protein, 25% grains (NY Times: “Many ‘Healthy Obese’ Don’t Stay Healthy”). Be sure to consume only the amount of energy your metabolism is capable of handling. If fast food is eaten once a week, stop. Limiting junk food and creating access to fruits, vegetables, and whole grains are what will make a balanced diet (“How are Obesity and Overweight”). When a Big Mac and a plate of carrots ring the doorbell, answer the carrots! In modern society, people all around are purposely starving just to lose one single pound. Individuals must be able to come together as one people and experiment with HEALTHY ways of preventing obesity. Following these experiments, the generation people have come to know, the generation people do know, and the generations people will one day know will live where obesity isn’t the first, but last concern on the list.

Sugary Drinks and Obesity

Sugary drinks play a big role in the obesity epidemic. Children are constantly bombarded by advertisements about these unhealthy beverages. In 2011, a summary by Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity discovered that beverage associations advertised energy and sugary sodas to children by cunningly targeting TV, internet, and online social medias to capture their attention. In 2013, beverage associations used $814 million to publicize energy drinks and $52 million to publicize soda. U.S. households used $14.3 billion for sugary drinks. However, they only spent $10.7 billion for diet drinks such as water, juice, and diet pop. Why are we paying so much money for these sugary drinks that contain massive amounts of sugar? Normal pop and energy sodas have the highest sugar in them at 24-27 grams (Sugary Drink F.A.C.T.S). Many people in the U.S. are obese. 2 out of 3 adults and 1 out of 3 children in the U.S. are overweight or are obese. The country spends approximately $190 billion per year treating health problems about obesity. Increasing consumption of sugary beverages plays a big part in the obesity complication. A normal 20-ounce soda has 15-18 teaspoons of sugar and more than 240 calories (“The Problem: Sugary Drinks”). One serving of Coca-Cola’s Minute Maid Cranberry Juice Cocktail has 57 grams of sugar (Sugary Drink F.A.C.T.S). Crazy, right? People who consume these sugary liquids do not feel as satisfied as if they had eaten the same calories from a stable meal (“The Problem: Sugary Drinks”). In an experiment, researchers from Boston Children’s Hospital appointed 224 overweight teens – who were told to avoid sugary beverages – to receive deliveries of packages of water and diet beverages for one year. The people who got the packages gained only 3.5 pounds for that year whereas another group of subjects without the deliveries gained 7.7 pounds. The changes between the two groups disappeared after the deliveries ended (NY Times “Avoiding Sugary Drinks Limits”). Actions have been made to rectify this ongoing problem of youngsters drinking sugary sodas and pop. Local societies have started to publicize health campaigns to let people know the down side of sugary sodas. Policy makers have suggested requirements to control the drinking of sugary sodas and raise information about the hazards for consuming them. The Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative have assisted important beverage associations to advertise healthier options for beverages and avoid publicizing sugary drinks to children from ages 11 and younger in media (Sugary Drink F.A.C.T.S). It’s an easy choice to make. The detrimental, sugary, calorie-infused can of soda or the healthy glass of water?

Photoshop: What it’s really doing

Imagine choosing between losing your parents and becoming fat. Which would you choose? To most teenage girls, the choice is to lose your parents. Why? Because they want to achieve and maintain their “ideal” body. Everyone has probably seen at least one commercial, advertisement, or magazine with an incredibly thin model promoting a product. However, many editors of these advertisements are photoshopping their models to make them look more attractive and slender. This may seem like an effective tactic to sell products, but there is a severe impact of this photo shopping on their viewers. Photoshopping images includes smaller waists, larger and brighter eyes, longer legs, and perfect skin (Vagianos) (Wilson). Although models have been photo shopped to the point where their body proportions are unrealistic and impossible to attain, there are still women who think that those photoshopped women are how “real-life” women should look (Vagianos) (“Photo shopping: Altering Images and Our Minds”). They begin to desire this “ideal” body type, and eating disorders are developed in order to lose weight and achieve their “ideal” body (“Media Influences”). However, there is a very large impact of these unnatural, photo shopped women on the younger generation. Girls are being surrounded by the fact that being fat is unwanted, and they need to be thin to be happy (“Media Influences”). About half of girls ages 3-6 are troubled about their weight, and eighty-one percent of 10-year old girls are afraid of being fat (“Media Influences”). The majority of girls ages 6-8 aren’t as thin as they’d hope, and most teenage girls are more afraid of gaining weight than losing their parents, getting cancer, or a nuclear war (“Media Influences”). The fact that girls at age three are already worrying about their weight is heartbreaking. But, because of this message that is sent to them at a young age, many girls carry this notion throughout their lives that if they aren’t thin, they aren’t satisfied. I even have a few friends who avoid the foods they enjoy, because they fear gaining weight and becoming fat. The worst part: they are already very thin. However, they desire this idea of being incredibly skinny, even though it isn’t real, nor possible, which is forced upon them by the photo shopped pictures produced by the media. These advertisements have pushed the idea of being thin to the extreme, and it is to the point where girls are starving themselves to reach a point of thinness that isn’t humanly possible. They shouldn’t worry about becoming unrealistically skinny. Instead, they should enjoy how they look and love who they are, no matter what the media tells them is the “ideal” body.

Hydraulic Fracturing: Pathway to Fuel or Natural Disaster?

Imagine being approached by a corporate conglomerate and being asked if your property could be mined for gas. Fracking is the use of highly pressurized water laced with various chemicals pumped below the surface of the Earth in order to retrieve natural gas deposits located in limestone or shale (Susan and Meyendorff). Fracking has become a popular method of obtaining natural gas by energy companies and can yield millions of cubic meters of shale gas (Mooney). However, a single fracking venture can use over 7 million gallons of water and hazardous, explosive, and toxic chemicals found within the contaminated water are–often times–untreatable by commercial water purification plants (Royte). Furthermore, fracking has been linked to an unprecedented increase in seismic activity turning quiet areas into hot zones for earthquakes. Water stored beneath the surface of the Earth’s crust poses an acute public safety concern. Fracking and storing CO2 beneath the Earth’s crust puts stress on already strained seismic plates. In this case, it caused five times the amount of earthquakes than what would normally occur in the country (Petit). However, more immediate effects of fracking include exposure to fracking water. If livestock or agricultural supplies are contaminated by fracking water, disaster can ensue. When 140 cows were exposed to fracking wastewater, nearly half perished. The remaining cows suffered from severe medical complications and when pregnant cows were exposed to fracking water, birth mortality increased to a whopping 50% (Royte). The chemicals within fracking water include benzene, methane, toluene, and xylene– all of which are associated with organ damage, birth defects, and cancer (Royte). Also, the fluid contains small amounts of heavy metals which were retrieved after the fluid was pumped beneath the surface of the Earth (Royte). These include arsenic (which is associated with skin lesions and cancer), and germanium (which is associated with muscle weakness and skin rashes). The multitudes of dangerous chemicals make it such that there is no viable way to store the fracking water (Royte). As such, the fracking water is stored on-site in large tanks or open air pools, which can lead to leakage or overflow in heavy rain (Mooney). However, the main concern is that fracking water could possibly contaminate drinking water due to improper drilling practices. In Pennsylvania, the Department of Environmental Protection fined Chesapeake Oil Company for contaminating the water wells of 16 families (Mooney). In order to prevent the environmental and potentially catastrophic implications of continued use of fracking, regulation must be introduced managing the use of fracking to obtain natural gas. Furthermore, alternative methods to fracking are a necessary measure that must to be taken to continue to satiate our energy needs.

The Media’s Crazy Standards

The media perpetuates unattainable images of beauty for young girls that need to be changed. Models today are at a standard that makes young girls and women think that their bodies aren’t good enough. Models are getting skinnier and skinnier every year and unlike how they used to only be seen as icons once in a while, they are now known as the ‘norm.’ Designers have stated that their clothes look better on thin people. Hence, most models are ages 14-19 and average 120-124 pounds, meaning they wear a size two or four (Hellmich). The media today sets the standard of what’s attractive and encourages teens to reach that standard. In the media, thin women are seen as powerful, influential, and productive. The typical U.S. model is 5 ft. 11 in. tall and weighs 117 pounds. This is a ridiculous standard that needs to be altered especially since the average American woman is 5 ft. 4 in. tall and weighs 140 pounds (Hellesvig-Gaskell and Demand Media). 70% of girls in grades 5-12 said that the media does affect their image of a perfect body (Pearson). The promotion of thin girls makes girls insecure about their bodies and can influence them to do unhealthy things in order to control their weight. Some girls don’t even play sports or instruments to fit the image of a so-called ‘girly girl.’ Crazy, right? Thin models can promote anorexia due to the fact that it lets anorexics think that their deathly thin bodies are normal (Hellmich). Being too thin can be extremely unhealthy. Crash diets can cause underweight teens to have stunted growth and development, frail bones, and weakened immune systems. Some teens are even pushed to steroids that can cause infertility, impotence, and physical or psychological problems (Hellesvig-Gaskell and Demand Media). Another extreme result of the media is the use of Botox. While Botox is mostly used for wrinkle removal, the amount of teens ages 13 to 19 receiving Botox has increased by two percent, which is insane (Saint Louis). And if this isn’t shocking enough, how about photoshopping? Recently companies have started digitally slimming models, creating unrealistic thigh gaps and unrealistic expectations. Teenagers are driven to become “beautiful” out of the desire to be attractive, loved, and what they deem as “healthy” (BR Admin). The media along with modeling agencies have driven teenage girls to do drastic things because of their unrealistic standards of beauty. In order to reduce these girls’ insecurities, the media and modeling agencies must create new standards for models that are closer to the actual size and weight of the average woman. In order to fix this wave of insecurity, there needs to be a new ‘norm’ of beauty–one that all women can achieve healthily.

Paper Books vs. eBooks

Since technology is getting more and more advanced, there are many questions that begin to pop up. Some involve learning opportunities, others have to do with social media, and many involve adapting to today’s technology. While many agree that the world is changing for the better, there are still age-old debates. One of those is the ‘E-reader versus real book’ argument that has been silently stewing in the minds of many since the first E-reader device was created. Many people bring up the argument that E-readers cost less. However, others who are classic enthusiasts, believe that it is almost blasphemous to give up the real books. I believe they are correct. For one reason, many students have said that they learn better by reading from physical textbooks rather than electronic copies. With those, there is always the fear that you would begin to wander onto the Internet or lose focus. While reading a hard copy there is less of a chance for you to become distracted (“Would You Trade Your”). Another commonly brought up factor is space. For example, when travelling, it is much easier to bring a Kindle with hundreds of books stored in it rather than lugging books around. I disagree. There is always room for books somewhere when travelling. On a normal airplane trip, I carry four or five books with me, with another five or six in the suitcase. In car trips, even more. If a person truly wishes to read a book, it wouldn’t be a hassle to carry it around. Not only is it an opinion, it is also scientifically proven that hard copies are generally better than E-books. A study in 2014 found that readers of a short mystery story on a Kindle were worse at recalling the order of events than those who read a paper version (Grate). Also, readers tend to skip lines when reading a text digitally. A study from 2006 shows that people tend to read in an “F” pattern on an online copy. They read the top line and then skim through the left side of the rest (Grate). If that isn’t enough to convince you, reading “old-fashioned” novels also improves sleeping. By reading a paper book an hour before going to sleep, your brain enters a zone that is completely different from the one it would be in from reading an E-book (Grate). The smell of novels, the flipping of the pages, and the feel of a physical book gives a person the whole experience of reading a novel. Reading through a screen just doesn’t have quite the same feel. Only real books can fully immerse the reader in a different world.

The use of a blanket filter program on a school internet service inhibits students’ learning and prevents them from using a wide variety of sources. This kind of blanket filter completely censors massive amounts of information that needn’t be censored. The intent of a blanket filter is to keep the learning environment of the students clear of inappropriate material and distractions, however, more often than not, it ends up censoring sources of information and preventing students from seeing all sides of a topic. While the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) requires certain kinds of sites to be blocked, most school’s filters block sites far beyond the CIPA requirements, and educational sites are often caught in the over-zealous filter (Shulten). This process also prevents students from learning how to sift through all kinds of information, and find the sources they need, because of the excessively selective filter. Blanket filters often block social networking sites as well, even though they are some of the best sources of opinion on the internet. Social networking sites that are blocked also offer a valuable communication tool for educators and students; the teacher can incorporate the social networking into a lesson to provide a source of relation to the students (Shulten). In addition, students find that filters are ineffective, with many inappropriate or gaming sites remaining available, while educational resources sit locked away behind the filter. Not to mention, many filters can be bypassed with a very simple change in web address, so they serve no purpose whatsoever (Shulten). Blatant over-filtering can be a serious problem in schools. Not only can it give certain students advantages, i.e., those with unimpeded Internet at home or elsewhere, but it also seriously obstructs those students’ learning who do not have a way to access sites that they may need to complete schoolwork (“What’s the Impact of Overzealous”). To be frank, over-filtering is caused by something that is extremely easy to fix: Fear. CIPA requirements are clear, but apparently not defined to the length that school district administrators would like, for there are sharp financial repercussions for ‘under-filtering.’ This is what causes said administrators to become ‘filter-crazy’ and make the filter become counter-productive (“What’s the Impact of Overzealous”). Though the filter may be well-intended, unless authority is willing to take more of a risk, it will continue to become more and more of a problem in the twenty-first century classroom. The CIPA’s requirements, and filters in general, are literally a requirement for any school that wants to use the Internet within their curriculums. However, as it currently stands, it may be more helpful to the learning environment to remove any influence of the Internet at all, than keep a watered-down, over-filtered version of what could be great.

Are We Keeping Students From Success? If a student is accelerated academically and needs a bigger challenge, could skipping grades be the solution? Many schools are questioning whether kids should be able to skip grades. Skipping grades could have many benefits, but not everyone thinks so. A young girl named Annalisee was very capable of skipping grades. She had a very high IQ and showed signs of being ahead of her classmates (Cloud). But her school system did not allow her to skip more than two grades when she was in elementary school, so her mother decided to homeschool her instead (Cloud). When Annalisee reached age 13, her mother felt she was no longer capable of teaching her (Cloud). Because the school didn’t let her skip grades when she was younger, she didn’t learn as much as she could overall. Skipping grades is a big advantage. An example of that is a girl named Linda McVeigh. She was a young elementary school girl who was put in a higher grade. She later became very athletically inclined, extremely smart, and in high school she was co-valedictorian (“Skipping a Grade is Rare”). If she was not put in a higher grade this would’ve happened much later or not at all. This proves that skipping grades can help children grow. If students are benefiting from skipping grades, why keep them from succeeding? Skipping grades like senior year could also be better. Senior year is usually an unproductive year for students anyway.(Schulten). And if students chose to take the courses that complete their high school education a year early, then they should be eligible to graduate. Students could benefit more from graduating earlier and getting a job, attending college, or volunteering, according to Marc Bernstein (Schulten). Schools should continue to let students skip grades in school. Students who deserve to be in higher grades should be put in a grade where they are challenged, not stuck in a grade where they are bored. Some advanced kids who are not allowed to skip grades actually do worse in school because they are bored (“Pros and Cons of Skipping”). And the opposite applies. Students who are not ready to skip grades need to be kept in their current grade. Schools cannot continue to send students forward who are not ready. If students are held back for failing, they should definitely be able to move forward for doing extremely well. This problem needs to be corrected before more students are put in the wrong situation. Fixing this problem is not hard. Schools need to separate the students that are ready to skip grades. To do that, they could offer testing or recommend specific students. This could help determine which students are not ready to move on and which are. This could help many students receive the education they deserve.

Maybe Being Late is a Good Thing Schools should open later for many more reasons than people think. “Teenagers are developmentally driven to be late to bed, late to rise,” said Jilly Dos Santos. New evidence says that later high school starts have many benefits. The kids there make better grades, do better on standardized tests, have better mental health, and attend school more often (Hoffman N.p). Researchers say that as teenagers are growing, as hormones are surging through them, and their brain is developing that teens who get 8 to 9 hours of sleep every night get into less fights, wrecks, learn better, and also don’t have as many athletic injuries. Sleeping can also keep students from making risky or dangerous decisions (Hoffman N.p). As children are going through puberty they have a later release of the sleep hormone melatonin, which means they don’t start feeling drowsy until around 11 p.m.(Hoffman N.p). The release of the hormone can be delayed even more by the blue light emanated from electronic devices that tricks the brain into sensing wakeful daylight, slowing the release of the melatonin even more, and as a result, the onset of sleep (Hoffman N.p). Researchers in Minnesota discovered that 88 percent of teens kept an electronic device in their bedroom (Hoffman N.p). Many parents and even some students have an objection to starting the day later. There is a variety of reasons, but the most common were that sports practices would end later, it would jeopardize student and parent jobs, and that it would take time out of homework and extracurricular activities. The National Sleep Foundation conducted a study that revealed that 60% of kids under 18 said that they felt tired sometime in the day, and 15% admitted to falling asleep sometime during the school year (School N.p.). Over time, sleep deprivation can lead to serious consequences for academic achievement (School N.p.). It can also cause mental and physical problems somewhere in the body system. Overall, it would be better if schools start later because it would improve the mental and physical health of the students. If needed sports practices could end earlier and parents jobs could start later. One day those students will be parents with jobs and their kids will face the same issues that they did in school, should school start later in the morning? Hoffman, Jan. “To Keep Teenagers Alert, Schools Let Them Sleep In.” New York Times. New York Times, 3 Mar. 2014. Web. 30 Jan. 2015. //well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/13/to-keep-teenagers-alert-schools-let-them-sleep-in/ “School Start Time and Sleep.” National Sleep Foundation. National Sleep Foundation, 2015. Web. 2 Feb. 2015. //sleepfoundation.org/sleep-news/school-start-time-and-sleep

CREATIVE MINDS? Schools have been known to have extra activities to improve reading, math, and writing, but have you ever seen an extra activity to improve creative skills? Some people like being creative because it helps get rid of stress. Most schools are getting rid of art activities so students can focus on reading, math, and writing. Schools do not provide enough creative activities. Art solves life problems, and helps us become aware of there existence. Art is being forgotten because schools are trying to raise test scores making classes have less creativity time. Arts education has slipped for the past three decades , that have crammed the public sense that art is lovely but not needed. By doing this, they are starting to cut down creative activities. Many teachers assume that creativity is innate and random. They believe that some people are struck by it, or maybe has a special gene. Teachers are seldom taught how to teach creativity, but there are a few teachers that have a “gift” for it. The teachers that teach creativity are ruining it by having them draw something perfectly or have them color in a picture. Most people do not even care if they do something creative they would get a bad grade for not doing what they are told to do. Some people kill creativity by criticizing peoples work. By doing this you are destroying peoples self-esteem where they will not be creative any more. By demonstrating you are also killing creativity. Also by using examples, praising neatness, encouraging no focus, and making suggestions. By doing these things we are killing creativity. Students need to understand that there is usually many paths that lead to understanding. They should be encouraged to seek out and experiment with new ideas or new things. They need to view mistakes as things to learn from. Students should be able to think “outside the box”. Students should be able to build on others’ ideas. If students can not do this they will not get on very good in life. Teachers that want to encourage creativity in the classroom should make sure they are giving their students a lot of choice and different options when it comes to assignments and projects. By doing this they learn how to make choices. Teachers encourage creativity by not imposing too many assignments and rules on students, giving students choices, providing students opportunities to become aware of their creativity, and accepting students as they are. In the end students could do a lot if they have creativeness. Some ways this could be possible could be projects, experiments, and presentations. With creativeness students can get further in life, and more job chances.

WORKS CITED: 1.) Bartel, Marvin. ” Ways Not To Kill Classroom Creativity”. https://www.goshen.edu . April 3, 2013. web. February 2, 2015 2.) Gonchar, Michael. ” Do schools Provide Students With enough opportunities to be creative?” Learning.blogs.nytimes.com. The New York Times. September 27, 2013. web. February 2, 2015.

Pushing to Achieve

Imagine that you are four years old. Your mom or dad signed you up for a program in which he or she had to pay up to or over $300. You are only four and you are learning literature and math that is over your grade level just to get ahead. Wouldn’t you feel irritated that your parents were jamming your head with things that you didn’t need to know just yet? Adults are hurting young children by pushing them to achieve. The programs described above, are all over the world. We think parents are hurting young children by pushing them to achieve. It is supported by a theory in development, which states that the logical structure of reading and math requires syllogistic reasoning abilities by the child. Most young children do not have this form of reasoning until the age of five or six, therefore it doesn’t make sense to introduce formal reading and math until then. Those who believe in academic training for very young children made a mistake: They do not recognize that there are different levels of understanding in math and reading. Learning to identify numbers and letters is far different from learning to perform math and to read with understanding. To support, “Sesame Street” has run for more than 30 years. Children today know their numbers and letters earlier than ever before (most at two). Yet children today are not learning math or reading any earlier or better than children did before there was “Sesame Street.” Learning the names of numbers and letters is only the first step in the attainment of true numerical understanding and reading comprehension (Schulten. N.P.) History tell us, harmless pushing on a subject to achieve a goal is not so harmless after all. We think adults should not push their children too hard to achieve at a young age. Next time, don’t push them into the direction you want them to go, give little nudges to lead them on the right path. Parents, let them have fun while their young.

Works Cited: Schulten, Katherine. “Are Adults Hurting Young Children by Pushing Them to Achieve?” The New York Times. The New York Times, May 16, 2011. Web. February 2, 2015. Elkind, David. “Much Too Early”. Education Next. Education next. n.d. Web. February 2, 2015.

Hyper-links: //educationnext.org/much-too-early/ //learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/05/16/are-adults-hurting-young-children-by-pushing-them-to-achieve/

Why Climate Change is an Important Issue In Europe during June, 2003 temperatures were 2.3 degrees Celsius (4.1 degrees Fahrenheit) hotter than the average temperature that summer, the hottest since at least 1540. These temperatures caused up to 70,000 additional deaths. The heat also caused forest fires that year. Climate change is an important issue and must be stopped. Heat waves are occurring more often in Europe. Three scientist from the British weather agency stated that the probability of a heat wave similar to the one in 2003 was less than one every 1,000 years. The probability now is one every 127 years. Temperatures are expected to continue rising. Climate change does not only affect humans, other animals such as porcelain crabs are also affected by climate change. In a study scientist added Carbon dioxide to the crab’s water. When Carbon dioxide is added to the water, the water becomes an acid. Acid causes a drop in pH levels. Scientist also increased the temperature in the laboratory, as the pH levels dropped the crab’s ability to endure heat increased, but their metabolism dropped and the crabs became more slothful (Bhanoo N.p.). When the crabs have low energy they can not grow or reproduce. These crabs are an important part in the ecosystem; many bird, fish, and other crabs consume the porcelain crabs. In conclusion, climate change is an important issue and must be stopped. Climate change has already caused an additional 70,000 deaths and forest fires. Heat waves are occurring more often than before. Climate change has also affected animals such as porcelain crabs. Porcelain crabs and other animals affected by climate change are an important part of the food chain.

Just Pay The Kids Imagine you were a college football player that comes from a poor family and you don’t have enough money to get by. Some players don’t have rich families to pay for their every need. Some players might be living in poverty . This problem could be solved if you just simply pay the athletes. College athletes should be paid by the colleges to play. There has been multiple cases of college football players threatening to unionize if they did not start paying the players. The most recent and most known incident of this was when Kain Colter and some of his friends and teammates created a union. This could be a major problem if the players unionized and decided to not play if they did not get paid. Also, in 2011 the highest paid coaches made 53.4 million and the players made a whopping $0 (Joe N.p). I don’t see how this is fair for the coaches to get paid so much and the players get nothing. They shouldn’t be paid that much but just enough to get by. About $2,000 a month (Joe N.p.) would be sufficient for the player to be able to get the necessities, and to be able to pay for housing and to have a little to spend for pleasure. I also think they should be able to sell their own autographs to make a profit so they could get a little spending money to buy some things they want. Either they should pay their players so they could pay for housing or they could pay for the housing and different assortments of things like their gas bills. They should not be paid like NFL players but they should be paid enough to get by and pay bills each month. Even though some people may think that college football players are always wealthy this is not true. Some are not, and sometimes after paying bills they have no leftover spending money. Also for walk-on athletes it would help pay their college intuition. If you paid your athletes to play it also might persuade more people to play college sports. Also if your family was in financial trouble it would provide your family with extra money. This would help the family of the athletes and not only the athletes themselves. Some athletes have to go and work instead of going to college because their families need the money immediately and not later.

In conclusion, athletes should be paid to play in college. Their families and the athletes themselves would be extremely helpful. Paying them will surely help their future financially. Nocera, Joe. “Lets Start Paying College Athletes”. New York Times.30 December 2011. Web. 30 January 2015. Martin, Johnson. “Should College Athletes be Paid for Their Performance?” The Seattle Times. 30 October 2014.Web. 30 January 2015

I am not racist for poking you.

Lately in our society, there have been more claims of racism than needed. From cops killing a young black guy for a crime not verified, to students telling others they are racist for saying something unfavorable. My younger brother’s name is Michael Brown and though he is not fully black, I have heard many people comparing him to the now deceased Michael Brown. “In 2010, there were 31,672 deaths in the US from firearms mainly through suicide and homicide, according to CDC compilation of data form death certificates. Among racial and ethnic groups , blacks are over-represented among gun homicide victims; Blacks were 55% of shooting homicide victims in 2010, but 13% of the population.”(Cohn 2). “In 2008, the homicide victimization rate for blacks (19.6 homicides per 100,000) was 6 times higher than the rate for whites (3.3 homicides per 100,000)” (Cooper11). This year, there has been more discussion about this because of the shooting of Michael Brown. This topic should never be the cause of such debate.

“Most white writers are not aware of the lifestyles of middle class and upper class blacks” (Racism 1). People should not be writing about another race if they do not know much about them or how they act. To write or judge other people, you should know them on an emotional level. If someone was killing your children or youth, you would retaliate also. These people are telling us that we are over reacting when we are just trying to be equally judged. People from Mexico and other Central American countries are trying to send their kids to a better life. They are being shot down or sent back because they are too poor to pay for the passage. If someone from America went to Russia and came back illegally, they would be welcomed back to their old life. Things have to change when it comes to racial divisions.

Racism is not just a problem for blacks, but has become a major problem for Mexicans or Hispanics as well. Hispanics are being killed and harassed because they want a better life for their families and themselves. For example, “In May 1990, three white men in suburban San Diego were drinking beer. After a while one said he wanted “shoot some aliens.” From a house on the United States-Mexico border, one man, using a high-powered rifle, shot and killed a twelve-year-old Mexican youngster attempting to cross the border. The man was sentenced only to two years in jail for involuntary manslaughter. Clearly, this killer did not value the lives of undocumented immigrants” (Feagin 1). People should not think they’re able to kill others because they are different.

Works cited

Cooper, Alexis and Erica L. Smith ” Homicide trends in the united states, 1980-2008,” U.S. Department

of Justice. Office of justice programs, 2011.Web. 10 February 2011

Feagin, Joe R. ” White Supremacy and Mexican Americans.” Race, Racism, and the Law. University of Dayton School of Law, 2012. Web. 6 January 2015.

“Racism,” The New York Times. The New York Times, 2015. Web. 6 January 2015.

In the Eye of the Beholder

Imagine walking through a city adorned with vibrant paintings and designs on the walls. Sounds beautiful, right? Although many view graffiti as vandalism, some see it as a form of art. Graffiti allows artists to convey meaningful messages using recycled, old, and abandoned buildings as their canvas (“Is Graffiti Art”). Some graffiti can inspire youth to grow in free expression (Richardson). In 2014, only an average of 6% of all the graffiti in Minneapolis was made by gangs (“Graffiti Statistics”). Why are cities paying thousands of dollars to get graffiti removed if it comes from real artists expressing themselves (Richardson)? Most graffiti is meant to humor and entertain people who see it; since when is that a crime? If street artists painted their projects on real canvas, art collectors and museums would probably buy them, but since it is painted on a wall instead of a canvas it is viewed as vandalism. Graffiti is just another art medium that should be explored and studied. Graffiti is not vandalism because it is shaping run-down and abandoned cities into colorful and exciting tourist attractions (“Is Graffiti Art?”). All types of graffiti, whether good or bad, express a playful surrounding for those who see it (Doyne). Frequently, the walls most artists utilize are walls that are either part of abandoned buildings or alleys that no one takes ownership of or maintains. In other words, the main reason graffiti is not viewed as art is that it is on a wall. It’s a common prejudice that when an area is covered with graffiti it is stereotyped as a “bad neighborhood” with lots of crime (Graffiti: Art Through Vandalism). On the contrary, the programs and fundraisers such as the Heidelberg Project use street art to turn this dangerous and gloomy looking neighborhoods into areas that give off a bright, inventive, and motivating aura. Tyree Guyton is enlisting volunteers to paint colorful designs and patterns on sidewalks and houses in these neighborhoods; in other words they are using graffiti to cheer up a neighborhood (“Heidelberg Project”). There are many world-renowned graffiti or street artists who are greatly appreciated for the work they do. French artist Bilal Berreni is widely known for his magnificent graffiti. Bilal started traveling all over the world to cities that wanted him to paint street art in their cities. Countries were paying him to paint graffiti in their streets. How come this street art is heavily appreciated, but other spectacular works of art – whose illustrators are not known globally – are viewed as vandalism (Damron and Blanquart)? Perhaps we need not to change the graffiti, but only change people’s perception of the nature of art.

This is my first time having students submit entries. I am a little confused about sharing works cited. Based on the one entry that was published on February 5, I assumed that the in-text citations were adequate. Now I see other entries that have the works cited at the end. Please clarify when you can and advise as to whether my students need to resubmit their entries.

Carla, We ask that students cite their sources, but don’t stipulate how they cite them. Some students choose to list their sources at the bottom of their editorial; others choose to use in-text citations. Either way is fine. – Michael

Teen Clubs in Tiny Towns Teenage clubs have been in peoples minds for ages. In small towns, many teenagers have nothing to do. I live in a small town and we had a Movie theater, but it shut down in 2008 . There are many places that shut down in Clemson and haven’t been built on since. A teen club would draw so many teens that everyone would have a benefit. The parents would have the night to themselves, the club would make loads of money, and the teens would have something to get them out of the house. In the state of New York there was one club called “Club Crush.” Club Crush in New York shut down because it had little business, now they have moved to Mandeville, LA. Another Club is Club StarZ. Many parents wonder “What is going on in these clubs?” The Crush Club allows parents to go into the club and take a look around to see where their teens are hanging out. The only adults allowed into club crush though, are the parents. At Club StarZ, they have a dress code so that people don’t look It is similar to a school dress code but they bend the rules from time to time. Both of these clubs have different times of operation. Club Starz is open from 7:30pm until 12:00am. Club Crush is open from 7:00pm until 12:00am. These clubs have no alcohol! In the act of having no alcohol, it make the clubs a safe environment for teens. Though, these clubs serve many beverages “Inside the bar was stocked with $6 cans of Red Bull and $5 bottles of water, including five flavors of Smart Water. Crush does not serve alcohol, though it does offer candy – tubs of it” (Ryzik, NP). Both of these clubs have security provided by the city police department “Chaperones provided by the St. Tammary Parish Sheriff’s Office/Mandeville Police will maintain a safe and drug-free environment for kids” (Bachman, NP). Putting a teen club in the city of Clemson would liven up the younger generation in Clemson. Bachman, Kara. “Teen nightclubs? Are they an answer to the nowhere-to-go blues facing north shore teens?” NOLA Media Group. 2015. Web. Jan. 30, 2015. //www.nola.com/family/index.ssf/2014/12/teen_nightclubs_what_do_you_th.html . Ryzik, Melena. “Starter Clubs”. New York Times. January 15 2006. Web. Jan. 30, 2015. //www.nytimes.com/2006/01/15/fashion/sundaystyles/15TEEN.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 . “General Information about Club StarZ”. Starz Enterprises Inc. 2011. Web. Jan. 30, 2015. //clubstarz.net/oc/about/ . “teen CRUSH club”. wordpress. 2014. web. Jan. 30, 2015. https://teencrushclub.wordpress.com/

Are A’s Worth the Pressure and Stress They Cause? Are kids learning the skills they need to succeed in life, or in school? And are they the same thing anymore? Nowadays school is like a game where you learn what you need to know right before a test and then forget it. Teacher’s even teach test taking skills, so that you don’t even have to know the material to get a good grade. It’s more important to get and A, than to learn the information being taught. Some kids are so desperate to get a good grade they will do anything to get it, sometimes even cheat. According to Sarah Parker-Pope’s blog, which was quoted in the New York Times, “They say the ever-growing emphasis on academic performance and test scores means many children aren’t developing life skills like self-control, motivation, focus and resilience, which are far better predictors of long-term success than high grades. And it may be distorting their and their parents’ values” (Ojalvo N.p.). Another thing students do is take easy classes just to raise their GPA or ranking , even if the classes are not necessary. What students should be learning is that some hard classes are necessary to learn how to be successful later on in life, even if it means you don’t get all A’s. Teenagers need to learn how to deal with hard problems and sometimes even failures, if they don’t they will have trouble adjusting to life after school. Another problem with schools and parents pushing all A’s is that students are terrified of bringing home a B, which can push them to do desperate things. Students who struggle are so consumed with the idea that to be recognized as smart they have to get good grades, that they will do anything to be seen as that. Then there are the students who have always gotten good grades, they feel that their parents and teachers expect them to continue to get good grades which causes a lot of added pressure. Overall, schools are not teaching students what they really need to be learning, but are stressing all A’s, which can drive students and their parents to do things they would not normally do. Schools need to adjust to fix this problem or students will not be as successful in life after school as they should be. Epstein Ojalvo, Holly. “What are You Really Learning At School?.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 11 September 2011. Web. 2 Febuary 2015. Parker-Pope, Tara. “School Curriculum Falls Short On Bigger Lessons.” Well. The New York Times, 5 September 2011. Web. 2 February 2015. //learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/07/what-are-you-really-learning-at-school/ //well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/05/school-curriculum-falls-short-on-bigger-lessons/

Do you want your parents to divorce?

Divorces effect kids in many ways normally bad, here are some examples of how it effects kids and how we can stop that. “Many of the 1.5 million children in the U.S. whose parents divorce every year feel as if their worlds are falling apart,” says Rosalind Sedacca author of How Do I Tell the Kids about the Divorce? A Create-a-Storybook Guide to Preparing Your Children — with Love! She also stated that “depression is one of the more common reactions we see in children of divorce.” I’m sure everyone knows someone depressed or have tried to cope with their depression.One of the variables for depression is parents divorcing. Depression may result in self harm, or possibly even suicide. “Primary care physicians should always inquire about spousal loss. I’ve always felt that a routine part of primary care practice should be periodic screening for major depression, and physicians need to be alert for that because it is treatable and important,” says Wallace, who is a professor of epidemiology and internal medicine at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. Make sure after you or your parents get a divorce your screened for depression. Go to counseling and try to help yourself. Find what makes you happy. Hetherington, a psychology professor at the University of Virginia, found up to 25 percent of children with divorced parents “have serious social, emotional or psychological problems” in the long term, compared to 10 percent of children from intact families. Sometimes it is a good thing to get out of certain relationships, but you always have to remember what it does to your emotions. I have friends whose parents have gotten a divorce and they have depression. They don’t want to get up in the morning because they know when they wake up they will have more family drama they have to deal with. Keep your child from having to go through that. We can change this! You have options: marriage counseling, being sure you love someone before you marry them and have kids, be an optimist and overlook the bad. No matter what remember to smile. Never let yourself feel down. Who said you have to have someone else make you happy? Make yourself happy by trying something new, and explore. Don’t just rush into marriage, enjoy your single time before you decide that your going to start your life with someone. No matter what, don’t just marry someone because you have a child with them, or they make you happy for an amount of time. Marry them because you love them and genuinely care about them Work Cited Miller, Claire Cain. “The Divorce Surge Is Over, but the Myth Lives On.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 01 Dec. 2014. Web. 30 Jan. 2015. James, Michael S. “How Much Does Divorce Affect Kids?” ABC News. ABC News Network, 08 July 2002. Web. 30 Jan. 2015. Arkowitz, Hal, and Scott O. Lilienfeld. “Is Divorce Bad for Children?” Scientific American Global RSS. Scientific American, 14 Feb. 2013. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

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The Best Student Writing Contests for 2023-2024

Help your students take their writing to the next level.

When students write for teachers, it can feel like an assignment. When they write for a real purpose, they are empowered! Student writing contests are a challenging and inspiring way to try writing for an authentic audience— a real panel of judges —and the possibility of prize money or other incentives. We’ve gathered a list of the best student writing contests, and there’s something for everyone. Prepare highly motivated kids in need of an authentic writing mentor, and watch the words flow.

1.  The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

With a wide range of categories—from critical essays to science fiction and fantasy—The Scholastic Awards are a mainstay of student contests. Each category has its own rules and word counts, so be sure to check out the options  before you decide which one is best for your students.

How To Enter

Students in grades 7-12, ages 13 and up, may begin submitting work in September by uploading to an online account at Scholastic and connecting to their local region. There are entry fees, but those can be waived for students in need.

2.  YoungArts National Arts Competition

This ends soon, but if you have students who are ready to submit, it’s worth it. YoungArts offers a national competition in the categories of creative nonfiction, novel, play or script, poetry, short story, and spoken word. Student winners may receive awards of up to $10,000 as well as the chance to participate in artistic development with leaders in their fields.

YoungArts accepts submissions in each category through October 13. Students submit their work online and pay a $35 fee (there is a fee waiver option).

3. National Youth Foundation Programs

Each year, awards are given for Student Book Scholars, Amazing Women, and the “I Matter” Poetry & Art competition. This is a great chance for kids to express themselves with joy and strength.

The rules, prizes, and deadlines vary, so check out the website for more info.

4.  American Foreign Service National High School Essay Contest

If you’re looking to help students take a deep dive into international relations, history, and writing, look no further than this essay contest. Winners receive a voyage with the Semester at Sea program and a trip to Washington, DC.

Students fill out a registration form online, and a teacher or sponsor is required. The deadline to enter is the first week of April.

5.  John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest

This annual contest invites students to write about a political official’s act of political courage that occurred after Kennedy’s birth in 1917. The winner receives $10,000, and 16 runners-up also receive a variety of cash prizes.

Students may submit a 700- to 1,000-word essay through January 12. The essay must feature more than five sources and a full bibliography.

6. Bennington Young Writers Awards

Bennington College offers competitions in three categories: poetry (a group of three poems), fiction (a short story or one-act play), and nonfiction (a personal or academic essay). First-place winners receive $500. Grab a poster for your classroom here .

The contest runs from September 1 to November 1. The website links to a student registration form.

7. The Princeton Ten-Minute Play Contest

Looking for student writing contests for budding playwrights? This exclusive competition, which is open only to high school juniors, is judged by the theater faculty of Princeton University. Students submit short plays in an effort to win recognition and cash prizes of up to $500. ( Note: Only open to 11th graders. )

Students submit one 10-page play script online or by mail. The deadline is the end of March. Contest details will be published in early 2024.

8. Princeton University Poetry Contest for High School Students

The Leonard L. Milberg ’53 High School Poetry Prize recognizes outstanding work by student writers in 11th grade. Prizes range from $100 to $500.

Students in 11th grade can submit their poetry. Contest details will be published this fall.

9. The New York Times Tiny Memoir Contest

This contest is also a wonderful writing challenge, and the New York Times includes lots of resources and models for students to be able to do their best work. They’ve even made a classroom poster !

Submissions need to be made electronically by November 1.

10.  Nancy Thorp Poetry Contest

The deadline for this contest is the end of October. Sponsored by Hollins University, the Nancy Thorp Poetry Contest awards prizes for the best poems submitted by young women who are sophomores or juniors in high school or preparatory school. Prizes include cash and scholarships. Winners are chosen by students and faculty members in the creative writing program at Hollins.

Students may submit either one or two poems using the online form.

11.  The Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers

The Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers is open to high school sophomores and juniors, and the winner receives a full scholarship to a  Kenyon Review Young Writers Workshop .

Submissions for the prize are accepted electronically from November 1 through November 30.

12. Jane Austen Society Essay Contest

High school students can win up to $1,000 and publication by entering an essay on a topic specified by the Jane Austen Society related to a Jane Austen novel.

Details for the 2024 contest will be announced in November. Essay length is from six to eight pages, not including works cited.

13. Rattle Young Poets Anthology

Open to students from 15 to 18 years old who are interested in publication and exposure over monetary awards.

Teachers may choose five students for whom to submit up to four poems each on their behalf. The deadline is November 15.

14. The Black River Chapbook Competition

This is a chance for new and emerging writers to gain publication in their own professionally published chapbook, as well as $500 and free copies of the book.

There is an $18 entry fee, and submissions are made online.

15. YouthPlays New Voices

For students under 18, the YouthPlays one-act competition is designed for young writers to create new works for the stage. Winners receive cash awards and publication.

Scroll all the way down their web page for information on the contest, which accepts non-musical plays between 10 and 40 minutes long, submitted electronically. Entries open each year in January.

16. The Ocean Awareness Contest

The 2024 Ocean Awareness Contest, Tell Your Climate Story , encourages students to write their own unique climate story. They are asking for creative expressions of students’ personal experiences, insights, or perceptions about climate change. Students are eligible for a wide range of monetary prizes up to $1,000.

Students from 11 to 18 years old may submit work in the categories of art, creative writing, poetry and spoken word, film, interactive media and multimedia, or music and dance, accompanied by a reflection. The deadline is June 13.

17. EngineerGirl Annual Essay Contest

Each year, EngineerGirl sponsors an essay contest with topics centered on the impact of engineering on the world, and students can win up to $500 in prize money. This contest is a nice bridge between ELA and STEM and great for teachers interested in incorporating an interdisciplinary project into their curriculum. The new contest asks for pieces describing the life cycle of an everyday object. Check out these tips for integrating the content into your classroom .

Students submit their work electronically by February 1. Check out the full list of rules and requirements here .

18. NCTE Student Writing Awards

The National Council of Teachers of English offers several student writing awards, including Achievement Awards in Writing (for 10th- and 11th-grade students), Promising Young Writers (for 8th-grade students), and an award to recognize Excellence in Art and Literary Magazines.

Deadlines range from October 28 to February 15. Check out NCTE.org for more details.

19. See Us, Support Us Art Contest

Children of incarcerated parents can submit artwork, poetry, photos, videos, and more. Submissions are free and the website has a great collection of past winners.

Students can submit their entries via social media or email by October 25.

20. The Adroit Prizes for Poetry & Prose

The Adroit Journal, an education-minded nonprofit publication, awards annual prizes for poetry and prose to exceptional high school and college students. Adroit charges an entry fee but also provides a form for financial assistance.

Sign up at the website for updates for the next round of submissions.

21. National PTA Reflections Awards

The National PTA offers a variety of awards, including one for literature, in their annual Reflections Contest. Students of all ages can submit entries on the specified topic to their local PTA Reflections program. From there, winners move to the local area, state, and national levels. National-level awards include an $800 prize and a trip to the National PTA Convention.

This program requires submitting to PTAs who participate in the program. Check your school’s PTA for their deadlines.

22. World Historian Student Essay Competition

The World Historian Student Essay Competition is an international contest open to students enrolled in grades K–12 in public, private, and parochial schools, as well as those in home-study programs. The $500 prize is based on an essay that addresses one of this year’s two prompts.

Students can submit entries via email or regular mail before May 1.

23. NSHSS Creative Writing Scholarship

The National Society of High School Scholars awards three $2,000 scholarships for both poetry and fiction. They accept poetry, short stories, and graphic novel writing.

Apply online by October 31.

Whether you let your students blog, start a podcast or video channel, or enter student writing contests, giving them an authentic audience for their work is always a powerful classroom choice.

If you like this list of student writing contests and want more articles like it, subscribe to our newsletters to find out when they’re posted!

Plus, check out our favorite anchor charts for teaching writing..

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Best 2024 Competitions for Students in Grades K-12

Competitions in STEM, ELA and the arts, and more! Continue Reading

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Complete Guide to the New York Times Student Review Contest

• Last modified 2023-11-22
• Published on 2023-11-14

Competition Information

Who can participate in this competition.

The New York Times Student Review Contest welcomes participants aged 13 to 19 from around the world. However, students under the age of 18 must obtain permission from a parent or guardian to enter.

What important dates should I remember?

Submission Start Date: The competition will open for submissions on November 1st.

Submission Deadline: All entries must be submitted by December 6th at 11:59 PM Pacific Time.

Winner Announcement: The list of winners is usually announced approximately 2 months after the competition ends.

What Can I Review in the New York Times Student Review Contest?

Participants can choose to review works from various different categories, as shown in the image above. These categories include:

• Architecture
• Restaurants
• Video Games

Important Note: A new rule has been introduced for this year’s competition. The reviewed work must be a piece that made its debut in 2023.

Is there a word limit?

Reviews must not exceed 450 words in length, excluding the title.

Can I submit multiple reviews?

No, submissions are limited to one per student.

Can I submit a review as part of a group?

Collaborative submissions are not permitted. Students must participate as individuals.

What are the plagiarism guidelines for submitted work?

Your article must be your original work. It shouldn’t be plagiarized, written by someone else, or generated by AI. It should not have been published in a school newspaper, other contests, or anywhere else.

This year, students must submit an “artist’s statement” to describe your process. It’s worth noting that this statement will not be evaluated for quality, and therefore won’t affect the selection of finalists or the publication of winning entries.

How will the competition be judged this year?

The New York Times Student Review Contest maintains the same scoring criteria as in previous years, focusing on the following five aspects:

• Opinion: The response should present a clear point of view supported by evidence, and convey the participant’s experiences and reactions in a clear and engaging manner.
• Attention to detail: The review should consistently display relevant and accurate details from the creative work.
• Audience: Reviews should be crafted for a broad audience, with particular consideration for the target audience of the creative work.
• Language: Reviews should engage readers with compelling narrative language, using an appropriate style, and tone, as well as correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
• Guidelines: Reviews must adhere to all New York Times contest rules, including the maximum word limit of 450 words, and should be relevant to the category reviewed by New York Times critics.

These criteria are evaluated using four scores: Excellent (4), Proficient (3), Developing (2), and Beginning (1).

Who are the judges for this contest?

The judging panel for the contest includes the Learning Network staff, a team of New York Times journalists, and many other educators from across the country.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a review.

A review is similar to an argumentative essay , as the reviewer has to analyze the work closely, understand the context and the meaning behind the text, and then explain why it is meaningful enough for you to review. Then, provide an opinion that establishes a position on the subject matter, and gather evidence to support your stance.

How can I make my review stand out?

The contest organizers encourage reviews that offer fresh, meaningful, and interesting perspectives on the work being reviewed, whether positive or negative. One way to make your review stand out is to create a compelling introduction. Start with a hook that relates to the work you’re reviewing, and briefly introduce the subject matter. For example, you can pose a thought-provoking question, share a surprising fact, or present a relevant quote.

I don’t know how to write a review. How should I start?

If you’re unsure how to begin your review, the contest organizers will be releasing a step-by-step guide to writing reviews, so stay tuned on the official website.

How Can I Gather Feedback on My Review?

Before submitting, be sure to share your work with friends, family, or teachers for feedback. They can provide valuable insights into the clarity and effectiveness of your writing. Constructive criticism can help you refine your review before submission.

In conclusion, the New York Times Student Review Contest is an excellent opportunity for young writers to showcase their critical thinking and writing skills. This contest offers a platform to express your unique perspective– be it on books, movies, or any other creative work. We wish the best of luck to all the participants, and look forward to reading your insightful reviews!

Further Your Writing Skill with Aralia

This class is offered in the summer every year. Students from 13 to 18 years old wanting to learn how to shape their written English into effective and publishable creative pieces will find this particular Writing Competition course very exciting. The class will be shown a range of tools to learn the nuances of controlled, purposeful writing, including: figurative language, effective structuring and specific forms that they will apply to their own pieces.

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How can I improve my writing? 20 Tips to Improve Your Writing

27 writing competitions for high school students? The top 27 competitions you need to know

Heard about John Locke Essay Competition but not sure where to start? Read this Complete Guide to John Locke Essay Competition

Finished your writing work but not sure where to submit it? Where to Submit Your Writing Works: 5 Main Platforms will answer your questions

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Your Ultimate Guide to Writing Contests for 2024

Because you just never know....

I first published a writing competition guide in 2022 and it was so popular, I've updated it for 2024 for this week's blog post. If you're a planner like me, I love outlining my year ahead, not just in term of writing goals but also for literary events, writing competitions, authors I'd like to meet and so on. (Yes, I know we're only in September but what can I say...I love having stuff to look forward to!)

Writing competitions are an incredible opportunity to get your work in front of industry professionals so in this week’s blog post I’ve curated a list of contests - most of which are an international competition - that you may want to consider as part of your author journey.

In fact you may (or may not) know that my own author career started as a result of winning a writing competition in 2016 which led to a 3-book deal. While it can be nerve-wracking to submit your work, the benefits far outweigh any discomfort, helping you understand where you need to improve, who the competition is, and what the publishing industry is looking for.

If you win, there’s often a cash prize along with the prestige that comes from winning first place. However, even if you're not a grand prize winner taking home prize money, coming in second place, third place, or having an honorable mention in a literary magazine is a fantastic confidence boost. Imagine how good it would feel to share your winning story on social media!

So if you’re serious about your writing and becoming a published author , check out my round up of upcoming writing competitions, many of which have submissions open now . As many of you are from all around the world these are not just United States based; the majority of these are open to international entries .

While this blog mainly focuses on adults entrants, for writing contests for college students, high school students, and young writers , I would suggest looking at the New York Times student contest calendar . There are lots of student writing contests to choose from, many of which are open to young people all around the world and they cover lots of submission types including personal essay contests, short story competitions, science fiction, letters, flash fiction, diary entries, songs, raps, and even visuals such as graphic novels and illustrations. Check out this link to see which might work best. The competitions covered below mainly focus on a work of fiction although in some cases you can compete with non-fiction or a poetry collection. Most writing contests require unpublished work and I'm sure I don't need to add that it must be your original work! When reviewing these competitions, please do check the terms and conditions carefully , focusing on requirements such as word count, minimum and maximum length, and what contact information should be added and where it should be included (usually, judges of an annual contest prefer to read submissions anonymously.) I've added entry fees in local currency and there are often options for fee reductions depending on your circumstances.

1. The Commonwealth Short Story Prize

Prize : There will be five winners, one from each region (Africa, Asia, Canada and Europe, Caribbean, Pacific).

The overall winner will receive £5,000 and the remaining four regional winners £2,500.

Entry fee : Free

Deadline : November 1, 2023

About : The Commonwealth Short Story Prize is an annual award for unpublished short fiction administered and funded by the Commonwealth Foundation . The story should be adult fiction and entrants must be citizens of a Commonwealth country . Submissions are accepted in English, Bengali, Chinese, Creole, English, French, Greek, Malay, Maltese, Portuguese, Samoan, Swahili, Tamil, and Turkish.

2. Writer's Digest Short Story Competition

Prize : $3,000 in cash, published in Writer’s Digest magazine, and a paid trip to the Writer’s Digest Conference. There are also cash prizes for second, third, and fourth places.

Entry fee : Early-Bird $30, Final $35

Early-Bird Deadline : November 15, 2023

Final Deadline: December, 15, 2023

About : Submit a 1500 word short-story (or less) to the Writer's Digest Short Story Competition for an opportunity to win cash prizes and publication in the magazine. Open to all. ​

3 . The Exeter Novel Prize

Prize: First prize - £1000 plus a trophy and five runners up will receive £100 and a paperweight

Entry fee : £20 (or £120 with appraisal)

Deadline : January 1, 2024

About : The competition is open to everyone, living anywhere in the world, published, self-published or yet to be published, who does not have representation by a literary agent, and who does not receive a contract from a commercial publisher by the closing date. ​

4 . Unleash Book Prize

Prize : $1,000 advance and standard contract option to publish with Unleash Press for one winning manuscript

Entry fee : $35

Deadline : December 15, 2023

About : Unleash Press are looking for submissions for novels, short story collections, and creative nonfiction manuscripts. 5 . First Novel Prize

Prize : 1st place: £1000, Shortlist Prize: £500

Entry fee : £25

Deadline : Submissions open February 1, 2024

About : The First Novel Prize aims to discover a powerful new voice in fiction writing, across the English language world. Prizes are available for unpublished or independently published novelists. The submission should be over 50,000 words and of an adult genre. 6 . Mississippi Review Contest

Prize : $1000

Entry Fee : $16

About : The contest is open to all writers in English except current or former students or employees of The University of Southern Mississippi. Fiction and non-fiction entries should be 1000-8000 words; poetry entries should be three to five poems totaling ten pages or less. 7 . The Disquiet Prize

Prize : a full scholarship, accommodation, and travel stipend to attend the tenth annual DISQUIET International Literary Program in Lisbon (June 23-July 5, 2024). Genre winners will receive a tuition waiver for DISQUIET 2024 in addition to publication. Winners who are unable to attend the progam in Lisbon may elect to receive a $1000 cash prize in lieu of the tuition waiver. Deadline : January 5, 2024

Entry fee : $15

About : The DISQUIET Prize is open for submissions in fiction, poetry, and non-fiction. ​ As more annual awards are announced, I will add the details to this blog post so do check back occasionally and in the meantime, I would urge you to work on your unpublished manuscript - you just never know, your idea could be a winning entry and lead you to becoming one of the many published authors who have cemented their writing career this way. Best of luck!

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New York Times Writing Contest Classes at Knovva Academy

These courses combine a series of in-depth lessons wherein the student will actively draft, edit, and revise a piece of creative submission-ready writing for one the New York Times annual writing contests. The student will learn a number of different writing styles, from creative nonfiction to analytical and scientific work. The student has a unique opportunity to perfect their craft while working one-on-one with an expert professor in the writing field. Readings will include sample winning essays and various guides on effective writing at our online education center .

Read More...

Course Length

There are wide range of nytimes writing competitions, including:.

• Editorial Contest
• STEM Contest
• Summer Reading Contest
• Personal Narrative Contest

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Follow guidelines for entering a New York Times competition
• Analyze prompts to select a strong topic
• Evaluate the qualities of successful essays
• Use rubrics to evaluate and score their writing
• Describe and apply the steps of the writing process
• Revise writing to include a dynamic “hook,” a strong thesis statement, clear supporting paragraphs, and a compelling conclusion
• Assess and improve style, diction, syntax, voice, and tone

Course Outcomes

Students will leave this course with:

• A repository of resources, skills, and exercises to improve writing, generate new ideas and enter writing contests
• Knowledge of competition outlines and rules
• Familiarity with effective research methods
• Proper citation techniques
• A polished final written piece that is ready for submission
• Satisfied criteria for Knovva Academic Standards, based on IB, PISA, Cambridge, and Common Core standards
• A Certificate of Completion from Knovva Academy and corresponding transcript

Morgan S., MFA

B.F.A, New York University M.F.A., University of Iowa Writing Instructor at Knovva Academy

Morgan is a world-class scholar who teaches English at the eminent Smith College. She is a prolific novelist and playwright who has written plays produced in New York, London, California, and Iowa. After earning her BFA at New York University and MFA at the University of Iowa, Morgan started her teaching career in the Peace Corps in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia.

Related Skills

English grammar

English vocabulary

Reading comprehension

Literary analysis

Drafting and revision

Giving and receiving feedback

Self-reflection

Critical thinking

Brainstorming

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2024 creative writing prize winners.

Please join the Department of English and Creative Writing in congratulating the 2024 Creative Writing Prize winners!

Andrea Cohen at 2024 Creative Writing Prizes Ceremony. Photo by Alberto Paniagua

Professor Matthew Olzmann at Creative Writing Prizes Reading. Photo by Alberto Paniagua

Ulla-Brit Libre reading at 2024 Creative Writing Prizes Ceremony. Photo by Alberto Paniagua

Sanjana Raj reading at 2024 Creative Writing Prizes Ceremony. Photo by Alberto Paniagua

Ethan Gearey reading at 2024 Creative Writing Prizes Ceremony. Photo by Alberto Paniagua

Maeve Kenney reading at 2024 Creative Writing Prizes Ceremony. Photo by Alberto Paniagua

Zhenia Dubrova at 2024 Creative Writing Prizes Ceremony. Photo by Alberto Paniagua

Anne Rhee at 2024 Creative Writing Prizes Ceremony. Photo by Alberto Paniagua

Jessica Yang at 2024 Creative Writing Prizes Ceremony. Photo by Alberto Paniagua

Judge Andrea Cohen at 2024 Creative Writing Prizes Ceremony. Photo by Alberto Paniagua

The 2024 Creative Writing Prizes Ceremony was held on Thursday, May 9, 2024, at 4:30 p.m. in Sanborn Library, and included readings from the prize winners and this year's judge, Andrea Cohen .

Andrea Cohen's poems and stories have appeared in  The New Yorker, Poetry, The Threepenny Review ,  The New York Review of Books, The Atlantic Monthly, The New Republic, Glimmer Train ,  etc. A new book of poems,  The Sorrow Apartments,  is forthcoming from Four Way Books. Other collections include  Everything  (Four Way, 2021),  Nightshade  (Four Way, 2019).  Unfathoming ( Four Way, 2017),     Furs Not Mine  (Four Way, 2015),  Kentucky Derby  (Salmon Poetry, 2011),  Long Division (Salmon Poetry, 2009) , and  The Cartographer's Vacation  (Owl Creek Press, 1999). Awards include a Guggenheim Fellowship,  Glimmer Train's  Short Fiction Award, and several fellowships at MacDowell. Over the years, she has taught at The University of Iowa, Emerson College, UMASS-Boston, Boston University, The Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, and Merrimack College, where she was the founding director of the Writers' House. She directs the Blacksmith House Poetry Series in Cambridge, MA, and will be teaching at Boston University in the spring of 2024.

The Sidney Cox Memorial Prize

• Sanjana Raj, "The Museum of Unnatural History"

Honorable Mentions:

• Maeve Kenny, "The Four Seasons"
• Eloise Langan, "Oh, Rats."

The Academy of American Poets Prize

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Pulitzer Prizes in journalism awarded to The New York Times, The Washington Post, AP and others

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NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Times and The Washington Post were awarded three Pulitzer Prizes apiece on Monday for work in 2023 that dealt with everything from the war in Gaza to gun violence, and The Associated Press won in the feature photography category for coverage of global migration to the U.S.

Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel and its aftermath produced work that resulted in two Pulitzers and a special citation. The Times won for text coverage that the Pulitzer board described as “wide-ranging and revelatory,” while the Reuters news service won for its photography. The citation went to journalists and other writers covering the war in Gaza.

The prestigious public service award went to ProPublica for reporting that “pierced the thick wall of secrecy” around the U.S. Supreme Court to show how billionaires gave expensive gifts to justices and paid for luxury travel. Reporters Joshua Kaplan, Justin Elliott, Brett Murphy, Alex Mierjeski and Kirsten Berg were honored for their work.

The Pulitzers honored the best in journalism from 2023 in 15 categories, as well as eight arts categories focused on books, music and theater. The public service winner receives a gold medal. All other winners receive $15,000.

Migrants reach through a border wall for clothing handed out by volunteers as they wait between two border walls to apply for asylum Friday, May 12, 2023, in San Diego. Hundreds of migrants remain waiting between the two walls, many for days. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

The 15 photos in AP’s winning entry were taken across Latin America and along the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas and California in a year when immigration was one of the world’s biggest stories. They were shot by AP staffers Greg Bull, Eric Gay, Fernando Llano, Marco Ugarte and Eduardo Verdugo, and longtime AP freelancers Christian Chavez, Felix Marquez and Ivan Valencia.

“These raw and emotional images came about through day-to-day coverage of a historic moment in multiple countries documenting migrants at every step of their treacherous journeys,” said Julie Pace, the AP’s senior vice president and executive editor.

FEATURE PHOTOGRAPHY: The Associated Press won the Pulitzer Prize for feature photography for its coverage of immigration from Latin America to the U.S.

FINALIST: The AP was named a finalist for the national reporting Pulitzer for its coverage of the hundreds of thousands of kids who disappeared from public schools during the pandemic.

WINS THROUGH THE YEARS: The AP has now won 59 Pulitzer prizes, including 36 for photography. See all of AP’s Pulitzer-winning journalism here.

The United States has seen more than 10 million border arrivals in the last five years, with migrants arriving from a wide range of new locations like Venezuela, Cuba, Ecuador, Haiti and African countries, in contrast with earlier eras.

The AP has won 59 Pulitzer Prizes, including 36 for photography. The news cooperative was named a finalist for the national reporting Pulitzer on Monday for its coverage of hundreds of thousands of children who disappeared from public schools during the pandemic .

In citing the Times for its work in Israel and Gaza, the Pulitzer board mentioned its coverage of the country’s intelligence failures, along with the attack and Israel’s military response.

The award comes even as The Times has faced some controversy about its coverage; last month a group of journalism professors called on the publication to address questions about an investigation into gender-based violence during the Hamas attack on Israel.

The Times’ Hannah Dreier won a Pulitzer in investigative reporting for her stories on migrant child labor across the United States. Contributing writer Katie Engelhart won the newspaper’s third Pulitzer, in feature writing, for her portrait of a family struggling with a matriarch’s dementia.

“Every one of the winners and finalists showcases a drive for original, revelatory reporting that underpins so much of what we produce, from the biggest storylines in the news to feature writing as well as classic investigations,” said Joe Kahn, the Times’ executive editor.

The Washington Post staff won in national reporting for its “sobering examination” of the AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, which came with some gut-wrenching photos. “We were eager to find a way to cover it differently and change the conversation about mass shootings,” Peter Walstein, the Post’s senior national enterprise editor, said in the newspaper.

The Post’s David E. Hoffman won in editorial writing for a “compelling and well-researched” series on how authoritarian regimes repress dissent in the digital age. Its third award went to contributor Vladimir Kara-Murza , for commentaries written from a Russian prison cell.

The New Yorker magazine won two Pulitzers. Sarah Stillman won in explanatory reporting for her report on the legal system’s reliance on felony murder charges. Contributor Medar de la Cruz won in illustrated reporting and commentary for his story humanizing inmates in the Rikers Island jail in New York City.

The staff of Lookout Santa Cruz in California won in the breaking news category for what the prize board called “nimble community-minded coverage” of flooding and mudslides. On its website Monday, Lookout Santa Cruz said that it made its coverage free at a time of crisis in the community, and also used text messages to reach people without power.

“In short, we did our jobs,” the staff said in an unsigned article, “and we heard so many thanks for it. The Pulitzer is icing on that cake.”

The Pulitzers gave a second award in national reporting to the Reuters staff for an “eye-opening” series that probed Elon Musk’s automobile and aerospace businesses.

In local reporting, Sarah Conway of City Bureau and Trina Reynolds-Tyler of the Invisible Institute won for an investigative series on missing Black girls and women in Chicago, which showed how racism and the police contributed to the problem.

The Pulitzer in criticism went to Justin Chang of The Los Angeles Times for evocative and genre-spanning coverage of movies. The Pulitzer board’s second special citation went to the late hip-hop critic Greg Tate.

The awards are administered by Columbia University in New York, which itself has been in the news for student demonstrations against the war in Gaza. The Pulitzer board met away from Columbia this past weekend to deliberate on its winners.

The Pulitzers announced that five of the 45 finalists this year used artificial intelligence in research and reporting of their submissions. It was the first time the board required applicants for the award to disclose use of AI.

The prizes were established in the will of newspaper publisher Joseph Pulitzer and first awarded in 1917.

David Bauder writes about media for The Associated Press. Follow him at http://twitter.com/dbauder .

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Winning writers: District students bring home awards in WQLN ‘Kids Writers’ contest

Photo provided to the Times Observer Five Warren Area Elementary Center students placed in the WQLN writing contest including Eliza Hellman, Adley Brown, Magnus Ferrie, Sophia Zivkovich and Reagan McClellan.

It’s a competition that, according to WQLN, is “designed to promote the advancement of children’s literacy skills through hands-on, active learning.

“The contest invites kids to experience the hands-on process of developing their own stories and illustrations, which builds language skills such as reading, grammar and syntax, and encourages creativity.”

The contest is open to students in grades K-5 and prizes for first, second and third are awarded in each grade.

At Beaty-Warren Middle School, Madison Tidrick took first place in fifth grade for her story “The Clown Cat.”

Photo provided to the Times Observer Madison Tidrick, a fifth-grader at Beaty-Warren Middle School, was one of four students in the WCSD to take first place in the WQLN PBS Kids Writers Writing Contest.

“I didn’t expect to win because I have entered a story since kindergarten and never placed at all,” Tidrick said. “I was excited, but I wasn’t used to getting all the praise I received.”

“I’m so happy that Madison received first place with her story,” her teacher, Meggi Brown, said. ” It was a very heartwarming story about a cat who saved the circus. She dedicated her story to her own beloved cat who recently passed away and everyone at the awards ceremony felt her emotions as she read her story.”

Eisenhower Elementary had six students place.

That included Grace Jespersen who took first place, third grade for “How I Met A Mummy” as well as Chase Chamberlin (third place, second grade, “The Football Game); Sebastian Cable (second place, third grade, “ Ben’s Adventure); Avery Bimber (third place, third grade, “Pawsitive Pups” ); Derek Leach (third place, fourth grade, “The Panda and the Farmer” ) and Amolia Jackson (third place, fifth grade, “Dream Big.” )

“My students worked extremely hard on their stories and had a great time working through the writing process and developing a creative story,” their teacher, Fallon Bachman, said.

“It felt amazing to win first place. It took a lot of work and I didn’t think I would win,” Jespersen explained.

Five additional students from Warren Area Elementary Center also placed, highlighted by Eliza Hellman taking first place in kindergarten with “The Smooshed Pumpkin” and Reagan McClellan’s first place, fourth grade work entitled “Supermarket Lovers.”

Three students finished in second – Adley Brown in kindergarten with “The Space Adventure,” Magnus Ferrie, first grade, for “The Spooky House” and Sophia Zivkovich, second grade, for “The Flamingo that Stayed White.”

“I really enjoy getting to think about a story and what actions would happen and then writing the story and illustrating the characters,” McClellan said. The whole process is very calm, including the award reception where we all read our stories and have snacks. The WQLN people are really nice and make us all feel welcome.”

“I was scared to read my story, but then at the end, I was really happy,” Hellman said.

An awards ceremony was held earlier this month where all participants received a portable desk with writing and drawing supplies as well as a Barnes and Noble gift card.

“I have enjoyed working with my students this year through the entire writing process: Generating ideas for their stories, developing a good problem and solution, writing their drafts, editing, and finally illustrating their stories,” Rebecca Downey, who worked with the students at WAEC, explained. “I am so proud of their creativity and hard work.”

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Yale university’s 2024 program for humanities in medicine (phm) health professions creative medical writing and art contest awarded first prize in the prose category to courtney hart ’25 msn, a nurse midwifery/women’s health student. to read more about yale school of nursing (ysn)’s other prize winners in this contest, please visit ysn news ., these small things, by courtney hart, to read more about yale school of nursing (ysn)’s other prize winners in this contest,  please visit ysn news ..