Local Students Take Top Prizes in Bill of Rights Day Contest!

Out of more than 300 entries, three St. Louis area students were grand prize winners in the annual Bill of Rights Day Contest.  The contest was sponsored by the Federal Courts in the Seventh and Eighth Circuits.  Students were challenged to submit artwork (including visual art, poetry, songs, and multimedia works) or essays that answer the prompt “What is a right in another nation that you would like to see added to the United States Constitution?”  Thirty-nine students from around the ten states were selected as finalists, winning $50 Amazon gift cards.

The Fifth Annual Webinar

Contest participants joined three federal judges on December 4 to participate in a webinar event to talk about the Bill of Rights.  U.S. Circuit Judge Jane Kelly (Eighth Circuit), U.S. District Judge Andrea Wood (Northern District of Illinois), and U.S. Magistrate Judge Veronica Duffy (District of South Dakota) explained how they interact with the Bill of Rights in their daily work as judges and what those rights mean to them personally.  During the chat portion of the event, they took questions from students and teachers reflecting on their individual pathways to the bench and offering inspiration to the next generation of citizens.

Grand Prize Winners

After the discussion with the judges, the Grand Prize winners were announced.  From the thirty-nine finalists, eleven students were selected for the Grand Prize of $500.  Caroline Zimmerman and Arnav Anilkumar, both from Chesterfield, were part of a four-way prize for first place in the 7th – 8th Grade Essay category.

Read Caroline’s essay here.

Read Arnav’s essay here.

In the category of 11th – 12th Grade Art, Yuhan Deng of St. Louis took the top prize.  Yuhan’s work is featured in this post.

Read Yuhan’s artist statement here.

Local Teacher Wins

Students were not the only winners in the annual contest!  In recognition of the essential value that teachers provide in ensuring a strong democracy, the event included a teacher drawing as well.  Teachers received a drawing entry for each student who participated in the contest.  Chad Harmon, an art teacher from St. Louis Public Schools was one of three winners of a $100 Amazon gift card.

Congratulations to Caroline, Arnav, Yuhan, and Mr. Harmon!

If you would like to see all of the winning entries, click here.