Polk County Public Schools
The following students were honored as winners of 7th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Essay Contest sponsored by the Community Relations Advisory Council of the Board of County Commissioners and done in conjunction with the Polk Public Schools.
The essay contest theme was “Capturing the Essence of the Dream….. Make it a Day On, Not a Day Off!” First-place winners earned a $1,000 savings bond while second and third place winners earned savings bonds of $500 and $250 respectively. More than 1,200 students submitted essays judged by Polk Community College faculty members. Judges evaluated essays based on content, organization, subject development, word choice, sentence structure, grammar, creativity, originality and other criteria.
Elementary Schools
First Place, Gregory Miranda, Brigham Academy (Winter Haven)
Second Place, Kyra Thompson, Caldwell Elementary (Auburndale)
Third Place, Tayna Moreira, Chain of Lakes Elementary (Winter Haven)
Middle Schools
First Place, Christian Stowers, Rochelle School of the Arts (Lakeland)
Second Place, Katrina Hughes, Mulberry Middle
Third Place, Jerica Johnson, Jewett School of the Arts (Winter Haven)
High Schools
First Place, Jocelyn Hart, Harrison School for the Arts (Lakeland)
Second Place, Darrin McDonald, Haines City High
Third Place, Dormisha Miller, Lake Wales High
Emalee Wolfe, a Lakeland resident and freshman at Harrison School for the Arts has been awarded first place in the Voice of Democracy Patriotic Audio Essay Competition sponsored by the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Ruskin Post in Hillsborough County. She received $500 and will compete for the opportunity to advance to the state level in the competition.
The Voice of Democracy scholarship program is national audio-essay competition created to promote patriotism among high school students. More than $3 million in scholarships are awarded annually, including $30,000 to the national winner. In addition to a written essay, students make an audio recording. Entries are judged on originality, content and presentation. The theme for Emalee’s presentation was “My Role In Honoring America’s Veterans.”
