“Without diversity, my town would look like_____?
This was the writing topic for the Third Annual Diversity Writing Contest sponsored by the Town of Greenwich Affirmative Action Advisory Committee, the Greenwich Time and the Narea Family.
This past Friday, the six contest finalists were notified that they were winners. And the winners are:
First Place Finalist Chloe Volkwein, Greenwich High School 11th grade
Second Place Finalist Morgan Kennedy, Convent of the Sacred Heart, 11th grade
Third Place Finalist Cate Wright, Greenwich High School, 11th grade
The honorable mention finalists are Emily Hirshorn, Convent of the Sacred Heart, 9th grade; Chloe Potsklan, Greenwich High School, 11th grade; and Robert Cheng, Greenwich High School, 11th grade.
There were seventeen entries from four different schools.
The judges were Greenwich Time editor David McCumber; young adult author and columnist Sarah Darer Littman; Greenwich Library teen services librarian Margaret Walsh; Affirmative Action Advisory Committee member Dianne Plummer; and contest sponsor Connie Narea.
The affirmative action advisory committee, which I chair, is advisory to the first selectman and superintendent of schools in areas that relate to affirmative action and equal employment opportunity. The committee is responsible for keeping the town’s Affirmative Action Plan current, and receives regular reports from the human resource directors of both the town and the public schools.
In addition, our committee seeks ways to inform the public and heighten community awareness about diversity issues. Our annual writing contest for high school students is one of the ways in which we try to reach the larger community.
The contest is open to all high school students who live in Greenwich, or attend a Greenwich school. Winners receive gift cards ranging from $500 for the first place finalist to $75 for honorable mention finalists. In addition, the Greenwich Time publishes the work of the top finalists.
The Awards Ceremony, open to the public, will be Tuesday May 15 at 4 p.m. in the second floor community room at Greenwich Library. Refreshments will be served. Finalists will read excerpts from their work.
Come listen to the students present their award-winning essays and look for these essays in Greenwich Time next week.
