| Statewide Essay Contest Finalists Announced
[August
15, 2008] Columbus: Ohio Partners in Character Education (OPCE), the character education initiative of the Better Business Bureau’s Center for Character Ethics, announced the finalists in the 2008 Statewide Laws of Life Essay Contest today. The statewide contest, in its eighth year, is open to winners of local Laws of Life essay contests for both middle and high school students. A panel of business leaders, educators, and community volunteers judged the entries.
The Laws of Life essay contest was created by Sir John Templeton in 1987 to encourage young people to reflect and write about their “laws of life” or the core values and ideals by which they strive to live their life. Forgiveness, compassion, love, fairness, and appreciation are some of the topics this year’s finalists wrote about in their essays. The Templeton Foundation provides encouragement and technical assistance free of charge to local schools and communities that wish to sponsor contests. Last year more than 155,000 students wrote Laws of Life essays in the US and more than 50 countries around the world. OPCE and the Center for Character Ethics sponsor the Statewide Contest to encourage schools and communities in Ohio to conduct this enriching and valuable experience. The 2008 Ohio contest received 107 entries from 28 local contests involving 45 schools and nearly 7,000 essays written statewide.
Major support for the statewide contest comes from Honda, Ashland, Wendy’s, and several private family foundations. Finalists, their parents, teachers and contest judges will attend the Awards Banquet on September 25, 2008 at the Makoy Center in Columbus where the winners will be announced. Cash prizes are awarded to finalists, their teachers and contest coordinators ranging from $25 - $500.
For information about table sponsorship at the Awards Banquet, please contact Lucy Frontera at 614 893-9971 or
lucy.frontera@charactereducationohio.org
Contest finalists are:
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Middle
school
|
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High School
|
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County
|
Student
|
School
|
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County
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Student
|
School
|
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Portage
|
Kimberly
Bonner
|
Stanton
Middle
|
|
Allen
|
Katelyn
Anderson
|
Elida
High
|
|
Williams
|
Rocio
Castillo
|
North
Central Local
|
|
Franklin
|
Katrina
Baumann
|
Westerville
North High
|
|
Summit
|
Kendall
Diver
|
Green
Middle
|
|
Allen
|
Luke
Brenneman
|
Spencerville
High
|
|
Henry
|
Josh
Drain
|
Liberty
Center Middle
|
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Hamilton
|
Theresa
Conrad
|
ECOT
High
|
|
Washington
|
Jeremiah
Goldsberry
|
ECOT
Middle
|
|
Pickaway
|
Devin
Fausnaugh
|
Westfall
High
|
|
Medina
|
Matthew
Grey
|
Wadsworth
Middle
|
|
Summit
|
Caitlin
McCombs
|
Green
High
|
|
Portage
|
Mackenzie
Huston
|
Stanton
Middle
|
|
Lucas
|
Sierra
Merillat
|
Springfield
High
|
|
Franklin
|
Julia
McDaniel
|
Genoa
Middle
|
|
Putnam
|
Kaylah
Raines
|
Columbus
Grove High
|
|
Summit
|
Desiree
Pavlov
|
Green
Middle
|
|
Scioto
|
Tiaunda
Ramsey
|
Valley
High
|
|
Perry
|
Aaron
Slatzer
|
Holy
Trinity Catholic
|
|
Allen
|
Diana
Reed
|
Lima
Senior High
|
|
Medina
|
Meredith
Undercoffer
|
Wadsworth
Middle
|
|
Auglaize
|
Alexis
Salsbury
|
Wapakoneta
High
|
|
Monroe
|
Carah
Weber
|
Beallsville
High
|
|
Franklin
|
Hilary
Walker
|
Westerville
North High
|
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