Three Richmond Hill Middle Schoolers have been recognized in a regional "Going Green" essay contest, open to all 7th and 8th graders in coastal Georgia and the Lowcountry of South Carolina.
Krysten Hardee is the first place winner, Ly Nguyen tied for third and Kayleigh Leadbetter received an honorable mention in the competition results, released recently.
RHMS English Language Arts teacher Missy York, who had Hardee and Nguyen as students this year, said both girls were a pleasure to teach.
"Krysten’s winning essay about an environmentally friendly grocery store reflects her passionate beliefs about ‘going green.’ Writing from the perspective of a school principal, Ly suggests innovative ways to ‘go green’ at school in her third place essay," York said. "These young ladies are always well prepared and typically exceed the required class assignments."
Leadbetter received an honorable mention for her essay about energy production.
"Kayleigh is a dedicated student with a real talent for writing," said Riann Willis, 8th grade English Language Arts teacher. "She is able to capture the attention of her reader and keeps her writing engaging to the end. Kayleigh is always eager to enter a writing contest and enjoys the written word."
Students were asked to imagine they were in charge of making their company or business more environmentally friendly and, in a 500-word essay, had to explain their ideas to go green.
Hardee’s essay focused on how to make a difference at the community grocery store. To build it, she would use metal framing instead of wood and wind turbines and solar panels for better heating, cooling, lighting and power. Fluorescent lights and automatic timers would reduce electric waste. Customers would receive an "Earth Savings Card" and reusable canvas bags with credits applied toward the card when used, and returnable and recyclable containers would earn credits on the card. Waste water, grey water and phosphates generated by the store would be filtered and used for outdoor plants and lawns. In her essay, Hardee’s green business would become an icon in the community and influence other businesses to follow suit.
Hardee has won a $200 U.S. Savings Bond for her first place essay and Nguyen will receive a $50 U.S. Savings Bond.
Judging was based on how well students wrote the essay with supported reasoning about their business and the environmental changes. Essays were scored on content, sentence structure, logic flow and word selection.
Overall, 10 students entered, representing five area schools. The contest was sponsored by the Gulfstream Management Association, a leadership and professional development organization within Gulfstream Aerospace.