Photo courtesy of Sean Flynt
(L-R): Rama Al-Balas, Max Feinstein, Vivaan Dudeja, Searcy Colvin, Collier Hughey, Juda Maha.
Altamont School students recently won seven of the nine middle school awards presented in this year’s University of Mississippi Writing Competition. This year’s competition invited students in Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas and Tennessee to submit work on the theme of “A Celebration of Identity”.
The Altamont students’ honors include:
Middle School Short Story
- First Place: “Away From the Shadows”- Searcy Colvin
- Second Place: “Malaysian Girl”- Juda Maha
- Third Place: “A Night of Celebration”- Rama Al-Balas
Middle School Essay
- Second Place: “History of the Queer Community”- Collier Hughey
- Third Place: “I’m Proud To Be Jewish”- Max Feinstein
Middle School Poetry
- First Place: “The Scarf Around My Mama’s Head”- Rama Al-Balas
- Second Place: “Proud To Be A Human”- Vivaan Dudeja
“The students in the two Creative Writing classes I’ve taught this year are a talented, hardworking bunch,” said Altamont English teacher Dan Carsen. “They came into the class strong, and through their hard work and persistence, they got better with every assignment. I’m very proud of all of them.”
The winning entries will be published in the university’s youth literary magazine, Celebrations, later this spring.
-Submitted by Sean Flynt, The Altamont School
