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FIRE’s “Freedom in Academia” Essay Contest
https://www.thefire.org/contest.essay.php

U.S. high school seniors are invited to watch two short videos about real students who were censored and punished for speech that is protected by the U.S. Constitution. Then, "in 700-1200 words, please discuss the videos you have seen and explain how these universities betrayed the purpose of a university and violated the constitutional guarantees of free expression. Focus on why such codes and practices are incompatible with higher education and why free speech is important in our nation's colleges and universities." Visit the contest link for more information and details.
Deadline: November 6, 2009
Prize: $5,000



First Freedom Student Competition
http://www.firstfreedom.org/education/students.html

U.S. high school students in grades 9-12 are invited to submit essays examining religious freedom and its relevance in their lives. This year's topic: "Why should international religious freedom matter to you as a young American? Is the United States commitment to monitor and advance religious freedom consistent with American legal and political history? Why should it be United States policy to advance this international human right? How does this responsibility lie 'in your hands' for you both as an individual and as a member of a community?" Visit the contest link for more information and details.
Deadlines: Register online by November 23, 2009. Submit your essay by November 28, 2009.
Prize: $3,000

Parsing a Prompt

Having a hard time starting that paper? You're not alone. Many students have difficulty beginning an assignment, often because they do not fully understand what they are expected to accomplish. Here's how to figure it out:

1. Your instructor has probably given you an assignment sheet - a prompt - that describes what you are supposed to do. If you don't remember receiving this, look for a description of the assignment in your syllabus, or ask your teacher, professor, or TA if such a document is available. Assignment prompts provide detailed instructions about the requirements. Sometimes these prompts also include a grading rubric with specific information about how your paper will be evaluated.

2. Once you have a copy of the prompt, read it carefully. Ideally, read it through more than once!

3. Next, analyze the assignment prompt by asking yourself questions such as:

• What is the purpose? (What am I supposed to learn or accomplish in writing this piece?)
• What are the stated substantive requirements?
• Who is the audience?
• How does the context influence the assignment? (How does this assignment connect to course content? How does it fit into my professional training in this discipline?)
  
• What is the scope of the assignment? (How many sources? How many examples? How broad or specific should my topic or argument be?)
• What style is appropriate? (Formal? Informal? What discipline-specific style conventions am I expected to observe?)
• What format is expected? (Citation format, length, margins, headers, etc.)

If you can answer these questions, you'll have a much stronger sense of how to approach your paper.

4. If you are uncertain about any of the requirements, ask your instructor for clarification. Once you know exactly what you are expected to do, you will be able to meet the objectives of your assignment more effectively, efficiently, and confidently.

How to Wait for SAT Scores

After months of preparation and perspiration, your SAT test date looms large. And then suddenly, it’s passed. But now what? The test is over, it’s out of your hands, but you still lack that all-important nugget of information: THE SCORE. At least two and half weeks will elapse between the test date and when scores are posted to the web. Though this period might feel like an eternity, it does not need to be excruciating! Here are a few tips for teens and their parents trying to weather this potentially stressful period.

For teens:

• Manage your stress levels in all of the usual ways: get enough rest, eat nutritious foods, exercise, stretch, meditate.
• Go easy on yourself, for at least a couple of days. Allow yourself to veg out and recover. Play some video games, hang out with your friends, get a pedicure, take a nap.
• Reward yourself for getting through the test, no matter what your score.
• Keep the test in perspective. Your score does not determine your value as a person. Though important, it is just a number. Colleges see you as more than just your SAT score. And, of course, so do your friends and family.
• Focus on other ways to strengthen your college applications: work on your essays, keep up with your courses, and stay involved in your extra-curricular activities.
  

For parents:

• Don’t hover, don’t hassle, don’t count down the days. Your teen is probably fixated on waiting for the score report. Don’t encourage this! No need to add your own anxiety to the mix.
• Instead, encourage your teen to unwind.
• Plan something simple, fun, and relaxing to celebrate that the test date is now behind you. Suggest an activity you both enjoy, prepare your kid’s favorite dessert, or take the family out to the movies.
• Remind your child that he or she has already made it through the toughest parts—studying for and actually taking the test!
• Most importantly, in subtle and unassuming ways, make sure your kid knows that self-worth and SAT scores are not related in any way whatsoever. No matter what, you love your child and are very proud of him or her.

Note: This piece originally appeared as a guest post I wrote for Vanessa Van Petten's website www.radicalparenting.com.

Cool Scholarship Opportunities

Krylon Clear Choice Art Scholarship
http://www.krylon.com/krylon-weblogic/art/

High school seniors, college freshmen, and college sophomores majoring in a visual arts program such as painting, drawing or sketching (excluding graphic design, interior design, film, music or the performing arts) are invited to submit portfolios of 3-6 high resolution images of their art work. An artist's statement, letter of recommendation, and transcript are also required to apply.

Deadline: May 31, 2009
Prize: $1000 + gift package of Krylon sprays and adhesives
Rules & Application Form: http://www.krylon.com/pdf/Krylon_Art_Scholarship_App.pdf



National Sculpture Society Scholarship
http://www.nationalsculpture.org/nss/index.cfm/method/main.scholarships

Scholarships are awarded for figurative or representational works of sculpture. Students must submit images of their sculptures on a CD. Applicants must also submit letters of recommendation and proof of financial need. Complete rules and additional details are available at the NSS website.

Deadline: June 1, 2009
Prize: $2,000



Swakhamer Video Contest for the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
http://www.wagingpeace.org/menu/programs/awards-&-contests/video-contest/2009/index.htm

President Obama has stated, “This is the moment to begin the work of seeking the peace of a world without nuclear weapons.” How can we achieve a world free of nuclear weapons by the year 2020? Once this is achieved, how can we make sure that the “nuclear genie” stays in the bottle forever? Make a video of 3 minutes or less addressing these questions.

Deadline: June 15, 2009
Prize: $1000

Voice of Democracy Audio Essay Contest
http://www.vfw.org/index.cfm?fa=cmty.leveld&did=150

The Voice of Democracy National Audio Essay Contest is open to students in grades 9 through 12. You must write and record an essay of between three and five minutes. The theme of your essay must be "Does America still have Heroes?"

Deadline: November 1, 2009
Prize: $30,000

Don't wait until Fall to think about College Admissions!

Though the college admissions game might feel like a "fall sport," there's plenty of training you can do in the "pre-season" to get ready to hit the ground running.

Here are just a few key tasks that high school juniors should start working on right now to keep from falling behind and facing an overwhelming first half of senior year.

You should be...

• Researching schools that are a “good fit” with your academic record, interests & goals
• Attending local & national college fairs
• Visiting campuses of interest & meeting with admissions officers
• Developing relationships with high school teachers who can later be asked to write letters of recommendation
• Thinking about your essays. Although the "official" essay questions will not be released until the applications become available in August or September, many essays for many colleges assume one of just a few formats. Begin brainstorming and drafting ideas for responding to prompts in the general realm of...
  • Your most meaningful activity or experience
  • How you overcame a difficult problem or challenge
  • Why you are the "best match" for a particular university (with lots of juicy specifics like course titles, program names, professors you want to work with, orgs you plan to join, etc.)

I can teach you tools and strategies for meeting all of these important objectives and more. Plus, summer is a great time to work on these tasks because your commitments and schedule are probably lighter during the summer than during the school year.

For help with the college admissions process, please visit my website:

www.tamtastic.org/collegeadvising.html

Note: Suggestions for summer essay prep are excerpted from p. 164-165 of Elizabeth Wissner-Gross's awesome book, What Colleges Don't Tell You.

National College Fair in Los Angeles!

The 2009 Greater Los Angeles National College Fair will be held at the Pasadena Convention Center on Monday, April 20th and Tuesday, April 21st.

A National College Fair presents a wonderful opportunity to learn about many schools at once. Here are a few tips for getting the most out of attending:

• Before the fair, check out the list of schools that will be participating. Decide which booths you want to be sure to visit.
• Print out adhesive labels with your name, contact information, and graduation year to stick on information cards and mailing lists at the fair.
• Bring your questions, plus a pen and small notebook to jot down the answers you obtain.
• At the fair, when you visit a school of interest, be sure to put yourself on the mailing list. Introduce yourself to the college rep at the booth, ask questions, and politely request a business card.
• Save some time at the end to browse other booths. You may discover a wonderful school you had not previously considered!
• Look for RED CURTAINS to find the COUNSELING CENTER. Here, you'll find local high school counselors who can talk with you about the college search process and make suggestions about which schools to visit, based on your interests and intended major.
• Look for YELLOW CURTAINS to find the RESOURCE CENTER. Here, you'll find financial aid representatives who can talk with you about scholarships and financial aid.
  

For more details about the 2009 Greater Los Angeles National College Fair, visit:
http://www.nacacnet.org/EventsTraining/CollegeFairs/ncf/Spring/Pages/LosAngelesNCF.aspx

Before you write, WRITE!

One of the most important steps in the writing process is also one of the most overlooked. I'm talking about PREWRITING, people.

Before committing yourself to sentences and paragraphs, get into the habit of simply playing with ideas for approaching your assignment. Prewriting allows you to generate content, develop ways to assert authorship (the expression of your own unique intellectual contributions!), and think about your assignment at a global, "big-picture" level.

A few ways to play:

LISTING
Create an unstructured list of ideas that come to mind as you think about your assignment. Just brainstorm. Let one idea lead to another. Jot down all your ideas, even those that seem half-baked or disorganized.

TALKING
Sometimes just chatting is a great way to get your ideas flowing. Talk about your assignment with someone who is willing to listen attentively, ask questions, and be encouraging. Talk to colleagues, friends, advisors, professors, etc., to get comfortable with the practice of thinking through your ideas out loud. After a good conversation, be sure to take a few minutes to write down the great ideas it yielded!

TURNING TO KEY TEXTS FOR INSPIRATION
Flip through key texts to get ideas for approaching your assignment. Do these texts contain problems, controversies, or unsolved puzzles that would be interesting to address? Closely review a portion of the text that you found particularly compelling, confusing, or complex. Consider the arguments in the text: how are they supported? Do you find the evidence convincing? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the arguments? What counter arguments can you pose?

FREE WRITING
For five or ten minutes, simply write anything and everything you can think of in connection with an assignment. Anything goes. Just keep writing! After you’ve written for the allotted amount of time, go back through your writing with a highlighter or color pen/pencil and underline the best and/or most interesting ideas you generated.

CLUSTERING
Also known as webbing or mapping, clustering can help you move from a general idea to a nascent structure for your paper. Put the main idea in the middle of a piece of paper. Draw lines out from the center to possible subheadings. Draw lines out from those subheading notes out to subheadings at the next possible level.


Adapted from Hendengren, Beth Finch. 2004. A TA's Guide to Teaching Writing in All Disciplines. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's. pp. 29-32.