2010 Contest Guidelines
The Reverend James Rice Memorial Essay Contest Sponsored by the InterFaith Forum of Rochester Building Community: Bridging Our Differences  Meet Jim Rice     2009 Winning Essays

Welcome to this essay contest honoring the legacy of the Reverend James A. Rice, a Rochester citizen whose life embodied the central principle of respect for people of all backgrounds. Your participation in this contest is most welcome. Please follow these rules as you prepare your essay.

1. Essay topic: "Building Community: Bridging Our Differences"

Write an original essay about developing understanding and cooperation among people from diverse backgrounds in the Rochester area. Some differences you might explore are ethnic, national, cultural, racial, religious, economic, sexual orientation, or disability. You are encouraged to describe your own experience and to develop some practical ideas for bridging differences, improving mutual understanding, and building community.

2. Eligibility:

The contest is open to all secondary school students, grades 9-12, who live or attend school in Monroe County.

3. Format:

• Format your essay single-spaced, using a 12-point font.
• As a general guideline, your essay should be from 2 to 3 pages long (an essay less than 5000 characters or more than 14000 characters will not be accepted).
• Please avoid unusual characters in your essay, especially "<" or ">" characters.
• If you include quotations, please include the citation.
  
  

4. Submitting your Essay:

• Prepare your essay on a computer, using an editor such as Microsoft Word. Be sure to save your essay file.
• Your essay will be submitted electronically, by copying and pasting the text of your essay into the submission form.

5. Judging:

Essays will be read by judges from the Rochester area who represent different backgrounds. Criteria for judging will include: clarity of expression, depth of thought, quality of writing, organization, appropriateness to the topic, length, and effective discussion of the topic.

6. Prizes:

•   First prize: $300
•   Second prize: $200
•   Third prize: $100
•   Honorable Mention: Up to eight Honorable Mention certificates

7. Contact:

Address any questions to the Contest Administrator, Karen Keenan. You may call her at (585) 202-7534 or send e-mail to: kkeenan@frontiernet.net. Please identify "Essay Contest" in the subject line if you send e-mail.

8. Deadline for Submitting Your Essay:

The deadline is April 10, 2010. Submitted essays will then be judged and the results announced in late May, 2010!