Peace Week essay, art winners announced

Arkansas Peace Week has announced the winners of its Youth Essay Contest and Youth Art Contest.

The Arkansas Peace Week Essay Contest for seventh-12th grade students featured essays on the theme: “In 2022, the FBI reported that Arkansas has the nation’s 4th highest rate of violent crime. How has violence impacted you and your communities? What can be done to reduce violence in Arkansas?”

The Arkansas Peace Week Art Contest for first-12th grade students featured art pieces addressing the theme: “What does peace mean to you? Depict a more peaceful community in your art entry.”

Arkansas Peace Week received more than 2,000 art entries and 300 essay entries from all over the state. Award winners from both contests were announced at events at the Arkansas State Capitol Rotunda on Sept. 23. Essay winners from each age group were invited to read their essays at the event.

ESSAY CONTEST WINNERS

Seventh Grade

• First Place, Amelia Grisham, A Safe Place, Hot Springs Junior Academy.

• Second Place, Kylie Rodriguez, Volunteering Vanquishes Violence, Home-school, Cabot.

• Third Place, Kami Perry, My look at a less violent Arkansas, Hazen High School.

Eighth Grade

• First Place, Rory Strasser, Arkansas Has A Problem, Jacksonville Middle School.

• Second Place, Demetrick Tidwell, Talking About Peace Week, Dunbar Magnet Middle School.

• Third Place, Nora Gonzales, Violence in my School, Annie Camp Junior High School.

Ninth Grade Winners

• First Place, Annaliese Brown, Violence in a Community, Woodlawn High School.

• Second Place, Michael Bowman, States Not United, Hazen High School.

• Third Place, Madison Reed, Help for the Children and the Incapable, Southside Junior High School.

10th Grade Winners

• First Place, Alexandria Evans, Keep Arkansas Peaceful, White Hall High School.

• Second Place, Keira McKinley, Reducing Violence, White Hall High School.

• Third Place, Aynslea Stokes, The Truth about Arkansas, Southside School District.

11th Grade Winners

• First Place, Blanche Finzer, Little Rock Central High School.

• Second Place, Ava Gillespie, It’s Time To Make A Difference, Russellville High School.

• Third Place, Abigail Myrick, The Impact of Violence, Guy Perkins High School.

12th Grade Winners

• First Place, Lucy Burks, Handling Violence, Little Rock Central High School.

• Second Place, Kaylah Atungulu, The Violence that Hides, Haas Hall Academy at The Jones Center.

• Third Place, Kennedi Scaife, My Vision of Peace, eStem High School.

ART CONTEST WINNERS

First Grade

• First Place, Jasper Wilkes, Battle for Peace, Landmark Elementary School, PCSSD.

• Second Place, Duy Tran, Peace Peace, Barton Elementary.

• Third Place, Adaleigh Wewers, Being Nice Neighbors, Paris School District.

Second Grade

• First Place, Amelia Trent, Building Love, Gentry Primary.

• Second Place, Christopher Raynor, Peace Turns Mad Into Happy, Landmark Elementary. • Third Place, Kehlea House, Peace Train, Bearden Elementary.

Third Grade

• First Place, Kwesi Montaque, Peace Has No Shade, Scholar Made Unified Academies.

• Second Place, Kinsley Williams, Peace is the Best, Barton Elementary.

• Third Place, Aliana Horton, Peace, Sylvan Hills Elementary School.

Fourth Grade

• First Place, Ellie Rodriguez, Growing Peace, Cabot Homeschool.

• Second Place, Travis Peck, Arkansas Peace, Parkway Elementary.

• Third Place, Zylah Scholes, Peace Changes Everything, Cutter Morning Star.

Fifth Grade

• First Place, Andrina Robinson, When We Join Hands, We Become UNSTOPPABLE, Community Peace, Hardin Elementary.

• Second Place, Alex Bogert, Nature’s Band, Fountain Lake.

• Third Place, Kate Wilson, Peace, I Declare, Friendship Lab Schools for Dyslexia.

Sixth Grade

• First Place, Arianna Lindsey, Unlimited Peace, Scholarmade Unified Academies.

• Second Place, Lillian Sexton, We’re All in This Together, No Clique Problem, White Hall Middle School.

• Third Place, Hallie Morris, Building Peace, Alma Middle School.

Seventh Grade

• First Place, Ada Chen, United Peace, Paragould Junior High School ALP.

• Second Place, Ariana Sadiq, A Call to Peace, Pulaski Academy.

• Third Place, Jakeelan Taylor, Rays of Sunshine, Russellville Middle School.

Eighth Grade

• First Place, Kimberly Martinez, Peace of Mind, Hot Springs Junior Academy.

• Second Place Ariel Sexton, We All Bleed Red, All Lives Matter, Arkansas Virtual Academy.

• Third Place, Sophia Finigan, Keep Peace in Arkansas, Hope Academy of Public Service.

Ninth Grade

• First Place, Jaidyn Randall, Peace of Mind, Arkansas Virtual Academy.

• Second Place, Kierstyn Potts, My Peace Is in God, Valley View Junior High.

• Third Place, Adeline Robertson, Aroma of Peace, Jessieville High School.

10th Grade

• First Place, Amberly Humble, Simple, Jessieville High School.

• Second Place, Izabella Bean, How I Find Peace with the Problem I Have, Piggott High School.

• Third Place, Cierra Marcum, Thug Life, Western Yell County High School.

11th Grade

• First Place, Jordan Rodgers, Attempting Inner Peace, Mt. Vernon High School.

• Second Place, Sophia Muniz, All One, Bauxite High School.

• Third Place, Giana Simington, 988, Piggott High School.

12th Grade

• First Place, Mahailee Martin, Peace in our Hands, Western Yell County High School.

• Second Place, Eleena Guenther, Peaceful Arkansas, Mt. Vernon High School.

• Third Place Kamma Reed, Peace for All, Jessieville High School.

Arkansas Peace Week and this contest is made possible by a grant through The National Park Service, in partnership with Jefferson National Parks Association and the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site.

Arkansas Peace Week (Sept. 17-24) is a program of activities with a mission to educate and promote peacemaking and raise awareness of organizations working to build a lasting peace in Arkansas. Events feature education, service, dialogue and outreach activities. The events take place during the third week of September, in observance of the United Nations International Day of Peace.