Calling All PSC Students:

You could WIN $1,000!

Student Essay Contest

The annual Scott Wright Student Essay Contest is in honor of Scott Wright (July 27, 1964 ­- June 08, 2003), past editor of Community College Week, recipient of the 1998 Award for Excellence in Higher Education Journalism, and the reporter who brought national attention to developmental education and the unique mission community colleges possess in providing an accessible education.

Student authors are asked to describe a faculty member, staff member, or administrator who encouraged them to complete a course, finish a semester, or graduate from college and how that encouragement helped them reach their goal(s) in a 500-word (or less) essay. Currently enrolled PSC students are eligible to participate.

It is at each member college’s discretion how it determines what essay(s) to submit to NISOD for consideration.

The Prize

  • Three (3) winning student authors will each receive a $1,000 check.
  • Each winning student author will receive a complimentary conference registration to the 2019 International Conference on Teaching and Leadership Excellence (May 25-28, 2019, in Austin, Texas), a complimentary hotel room (maximum three [3] nights), and up to $400 towards transportation costs to the conference.
  • The featured faculty members, staff members, or administrators in the winning essays will each receive a $1,000 check, a complimentary conference registration to the 2019 International Conference on Teaching and Leadership Excellence (May 25-28, 2019, in Austin, Texas), complimentary hotel room (maximum three [3] nights), and up to $400 towards transportation costs to the conference.
  • Each winning student author’s college will receive a complimentary 2019-2020 NISOD membership (July 1, 2019 – June 30, 2020).
  • The winning student essays will be published on NISOD’s website along with the photos and names of the winning student authors, the featured employees, and the winning student authors’ college presidents.

Timeline

  • Submission deadline: February 24, 2019
  • Winners notified: March 15, 2019
  • Winners’ photos due: April 15, 2019
  • Prize and essay presentations at NISOD conference: May 26, 2019

Past Student Essay Contest Winners

Submission

Student Essay Contest submissions are due by February 24, 2019.

* Please review the Criteria and Terms listed below before submitting your essay.

Essay Criteria:

  • Essays are limited to a maximum of 500 words.
  • Describe a faculty member, staff member, or administrator at a current NISOD-member college who encouraged you to complete a course, finish a semester, or graduate from college, and describe how that encouragement helped you reach your goal.
  • Essays must be non-fiction and any essay that does not address the contest topic will not be considered.
  • Submissions will be judged on style, content, grammar, originality, clarity, conciseness, articulation, and organization.

Student Author and Featured Employee Criteria:

  • Student author must be currently enrolled at a NISOD-member college through the Spring 2019 semester. Currently enrolled PSC students are eligible to participate.
  • The faculty, staff, or administrator featured in the essay must be currently employed at the same NISOD-member college as the student author’s enrollment and remain so through the Spring 2019 semester.

Submission Terms:

  • Submit your essay to Tracy Peyton at tpeyton@pensacolastate.edu. If your essay is selected to move forward to NISOD, she will submit it for you.
  • Upon submission, the student author represents and warrants that the essay is his or her own original creation and that it does not violate or infringe the rights, including, without limitation, copyrights, trademark rights, or rights of publicity/privacy, of any other party.
  • Immediately upon submission, essays become the property of NISOD.
  • By entering the contest, student authors, featured faculty members, staff members, administrators, and presidents of the student authors’ colleges, grant NISOD the right to edit, publish, copy, display, and otherwise use their essays, as well as their names, likenesses, and biographical information in advertising and promotional materials, without further compensation or permission, except where prohibited by law.
  • Submission constitutes authorization for NISOD to use the essays for research and grant purposes.

Selection and Prize Terms:

  • The winning students, featured employees, and winning students’ presidents will be notified via email by March 15, 2019 and must respond by March 22, 2019 or selection will be forfeited.
  • Student authors must not have won a previous Student Essay Contest.
  • The winning students, featured employees, and winning students’ presidents will be required to provide an individual photo to NISOD by April 15, 2019.
  • Each winning students’ college president will be asked to provide approval (via email) for the student to represent their college at NISOD’s 2019 conference.
  • Specific hotels are not guaranteed. Hotel placement is assigned by NISOD when the winners have been confirmed.