We the Students Scholarship Essay Contest

High school students interested in a chance to win scholarship money may want to check out a new essay contest from the Bill of Rights Institute.

We the Students Scholarship competition seeks to help high school students understand the freedom and opportunity that the Constitution offers. Prizes include $5,000 for the winning essay writer and $500 for his or her teacher.

In 800 words or fewer, students must answer the question: “Since you were born, has America moved closer to or further away from the ideals outlined in the Declaration of Independence?”

If video is more your style, there’s a video contest, too.

The deadline to submit an essay or video is December 5, 2014.

Good luck!

Middle school video contest takes on inappropriate texts, cyber bullying

Stories about the consequences of sexting and cyber bullying by teenagers and pre-teens appear in the media every day. To raise awareness about the issue, the 2009 Fellows Class of the Ohio State Bar Foundation created a statewide video contest called B4U Send.

The contest challenges Ohio teachers to team with students in grades six, seven and eight to create a short public-service video that addresses the emotional, legal and social consequences of these behaviors. Details and information – including a 46-page Ohio teachers’ benchmark guide – can be found here: http://www.osbf.net/what-we-do/b4usend.

The winning entry will be produced professionally and distributed to all Ohio middle schools during Law Week as a public service announcement. Good luck!