May 30, 2002
UNITED STATES HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL MUSEUM ANNOUNCES WINNERS OF 2002 STUDENT ART AND WRITING CONTEST
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United States Holocaust Museum announced the winners of the annual May Family Art and Writing Contest. Five written and three art entries were awarded prizes by the judging committee. More than 2,300 students from 41 states competed in this year’s contest. Students were asked to explain through writing or art why teaching about the Holocaust remains important in contemporary society. Winners were selected from two divisions, Division I represents students in grades 7-9, and Division II represents students from grades 10-12.
The writing winners are:
Division I (7-9th grade)
First Place: Rochelle McConkie, 8th grade, Magothy River Middle School, Arnold, MD
Second Place: Kyle Tyler, 9th grade, Emily Gray Jr. High School, Tucson, AZ
Division II (10-12th grade)
First Place: Zack Hayden, 10th grade, Colonial Forge High School, Stafford, VA
Second Place: Lindsay Frost, 9th grade, Girls Preparatory School, Chattanooga, TN
Third Place: Meredith Sellers, 9th grade, Girls Preparatory School, Chattanooga, TN
The art winners are:
Division I (7-9th grade)
First Place: Edward Elliott, 7th grade, Town School for Boys, San Francisco, CA
Division II (10-12th grade)
First Place: Julia Harte, 9th grade, Head-Royce School, Oakland, CA
Second Place: Andrea Perdue, 12th grade, Lawrence High School, Lawrence, KS
“The Museum offers its congratulations to all of the participants,” says Sarah Ogilvie, the Museum’s Director of Education. “The judging staff is highly selective in distributing awards. Up to three winners can be selected in each division category, but the standards are high, and sometimes the judges choose not to award all three prizes. The winning entries are most deserving.”
Entries are judged by a group of historians, educators, artists, writers, and Holocaust survivors. For both divisions, the judges evaluate works on the following criteria: content; historical accuracy and interpretation; originality; creativity; and presentation. First place winners receive $500 and a $150 gift certificate to the Museum Shop. Second place winners receive $300 and a $100 gift certificate to the Museum Shop. Third place winners receive $200 and a $50 gift certificate to the Museum Shop. All winners receive a Certificate of Achievement from the Museum. Teachers of the winning students also receive a selection of Holocaust-related books.
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is America’s national institution for the documentation, study and interpretation of Holocaust history, and serves as this country’s memorial to the millions of people murdered during the Holocaust. Since opening in April 1993, the Museum has welcomed more than 17.7 million visitors. The Museum’s primary mission is to advance and disseminate knowledge about this unprecedented tragedy; to preserve the memory of those who suffered; and to encourage its visitors to reflect upon the moral questions raised by the events of the Holocaust as well as their own responsibilities as citizens of a democracy.
