California Assemblymembers Adrin Nazarian (left) and Scott Wilk
SACRAMENTO, Calif.—Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian and Senator Scott Wilk are holding an essay contest for the 2017 California Armenian Legislative Caucus’ commemoration of the Armenian Genocide. California high school students in 9th through 12th grade are invited to participate in the essay contest to increase greater awareness of the Armenian Genocide on its anniversary.
The winners will be awarded scholarships and acknowledged at the California Armenian Legislative Caucus’ annual Armenian Advocacy Day during a press conference on April 17, 2017 and receive special recognition from the Assemblymember and Senator.
The winners will be contacted directly and announced to mainstream and Armenian media outlets on Monday, April 10, 2017.
Essay Criteria:
This year’s writing prompt will call upon students to assume that:
They have been hired to work for a still-to-be-constructed Armenian American National Museum, with the museum to be located in Glendale, California.
They have received word from the museum director that one wing of the museum will be entitled Notable Armenian Americans.
They are to share with the director, in the form of an “internal memo”, one name that should be featured in this wing of the museum and the reason(s) that this name should so be featured.
The students’ “internal memo” should be written using the template below (and accompanying instructions):
Internal Memo
Proposed Museum Exhibit
To: Director
Armenian American National Museum
From: [Insert name]
[Grade] / [School Name]
Re: A Notable Armenian American
Recommendation for Proposed Museum Exhibit
Date: [Insert date]
NAME OF PERSON BEING RECOMMENDED
(Insert here the name of the person you are recommending. Yes, it can be a relative or someone you know. It can also be someone you have only recently learned about.)
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH (100 words max)
(Insert here a brief description of the life of the person you are recommending.)
FOCUSED SKETCH (500 words max)
(Insert here what you would want to have clearly presented in the exhibit about the person you are recommending. This is your chance to go into detail about this person, answering the question: What makes this Armenian American so notable?)
PERSONAL CONNECTION (100 words max)
(Insert here what caused you to want to recommend this person? Are you related to this person? Have they accomplished something that you too wish to accomplish? Does this person have a personal story that you somehow connect to? Share something about you that helps the museum exhibit visitor better understand why you recommended this person to be featured in the exhibit.)
TAKE AWAY (50 words max)
(Insert here either a thought or a question that you want the public to have in mind after encountering your proposed portion of the exhibit. In other words, what do you want the public saying to itself when it learns about the person you are recommending?)
MISCELLANEOUS (50 words max)
(Insert here anything else you might like to add. This can include any photos, drawings, charts, book excerpts, etc., but no links to any video and/or audio clips or any webpages.)
****
Please include your name, age, address, high school, grade, teacher’s name and subject area, phone number, and email address at the top of the essay.
Scholarship Awards:
First Place: $1,000
Second Place: $500
Third Place: $300
Essay Deadline is Friday, March 24, 2017.
Please email essay submissions to 1915essay@gmail.com.
Source: Asbarez
Link: California Legislators Announce Essay Contest to Raise Awareness of Armenian Genocide
