Writing South Carolina: Selections from the Second Annual High School Writing Contest

Young South Carolinians offer their perspectives on and visions for the future of the state

"All of you who contributed to this book write much better than I did in high school." That remarkable observation was made by Pat Conroy in the foreword to the first collection of student writing generated by the South Carolina High School Writing Contest, and it embodies the contest's goals: to encourage young people to write, to think deeply and creatively, to express themselves, and thereby to recognize and cultivate their abilities. This second volume of Writing South Carolina features the insightful and inspiring entries of each of the twenty-nine winners and finalists: high school juniors and seniors who were challenged to share, using any genre, their ideas for making South Carolina a better place to live.

Through essays, poems, and stories, students used their imaginations to celebrate South Carolina and to envision a state that might be improved by addressing civic and social ills, such as domestic violence, racism, drugs, poverty, and educational inequality. Despite being raised in the age of texts and tweets, these young writers offer their unique perspectives—often revealing, thought-provoking, troubling, and exhilarating—in language that is uniquely their own and often eloquent and passionate.

Marjory Wentworth, who provides a foreword to this collection, is South Carolina's poet laureate and has served as a judge for the competition with Pat Conroy.

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Writing South Carolina: Selections from the Second Annual High School Writing Contest

Young South Carolinians offer their perspectives on and visions for the future of the state

"All of you who contributed to this book write much better than I did in high school." That remarkable observation was made by Pat Conroy in the foreword to the first collection of student writing generated by the South Carolina High School Writing Contest, and it embodies the contest's goals: to encourage young people to write, to think deeply and creatively, to express themselves, and thereby to recognize and cultivate their abilities. This second volume of Writing South Carolina features the insightful and inspiring entries of each of the twenty-nine winners and finalists: high school juniors and seniors who were challenged to share, using any genre, their ideas for making South Carolina a better place to live.

Through essays, poems, and stories, students used their imaginations to celebrate South Carolina and to envision a state that might be improved by addressing civic and social ills, such as domestic violence, racism, drugs, poverty, and educational inequality. Despite being raised in the age of texts and tweets, these young writers offer their unique perspectives—often revealing, thought-provoking, troubling, and exhilarating—in language that is uniquely their own and often eloquent and passionate.

Marjory Wentworth, who provides a foreword to this collection, is South Carolina's poet laureate and has served as a judge for the competition with Pat Conroy.

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Writing South Carolina: Selections from the Second Annual High School Writing Contest

Writing South Carolina: Selections from the Second Annual High School Writing Contest

Writing South Carolina: Selections from the Second Annual High School Writing Contest

Writing South Carolina: Selections from the Second Annual High School Writing Contest

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Overview

Young South Carolinians offer their perspectives on and visions for the future of the state

"All of you who contributed to this book write much better than I did in high school." That remarkable observation was made by Pat Conroy in the foreword to the first collection of student writing generated by the South Carolina High School Writing Contest, and it embodies the contest's goals: to encourage young people to write, to think deeply and creatively, to express themselves, and thereby to recognize and cultivate their abilities. This second volume of Writing South Carolina features the insightful and inspiring entries of each of the twenty-nine winners and finalists: high school juniors and seniors who were challenged to share, using any genre, their ideas for making South Carolina a better place to live.

Through essays, poems, and stories, students used their imaginations to celebrate South Carolina and to envision a state that might be improved by addressing civic and social ills, such as domestic violence, racism, drugs, poverty, and educational inequality. Despite being raised in the age of texts and tweets, these young writers offer their unique perspectives—often revealing, thought-provoking, troubling, and exhilarating—in language that is uniquely their own and often eloquent and passionate.

Marjory Wentworth, who provides a foreword to this collection, is South Carolina's poet laureate and has served as a judge for the competition with Pat Conroy.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781611177916
Publisher: University of South Carolina Press
Publication date: 03/01/2017
Series: Young Palmetto Books
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 152
File size: 451 KB
Age Range: 18 Years

About the Author

Steven Lynn is the dean of the University of South Carolina Honors College and Louise Fry Scudder Professor of English.


Aïda Rogers is a writer for the University of South Carolina Honors College and editor of State of the Heart: South Carolina Writers on the Places They Love, volumes 1 and 2, also published by the University of South Carolina Press.


Aïda Rogers is a writer for the USC Honors College and editor of three volumes of State of the Heart: South Carolina Writers on the Places They Love, published by the University of South Carolina Press.
Steven Lynn is the dean of the University of South Carolina Honors College and Louise Fry Scudder Professor.

Table of Contents

Foreword Marjory Wentworth ix

Acknowledgments Aïda Rogers xi

Introduction: "What" We Are, "What" We're No? Aida Rogers xvii

Juniors

Seven Hours and Twenty Minutes 3

The Gift of Eternal Life Charish Cauley (First Place) 5

That Accursed Flag 7

Cool Guy Khalil Gamble (Second Place) 9

Seeds of the Palmettos 10

Because the American Dream Is Still Alive Taylor Covington (Third Place) 12

Break the Mentality 14

When Fiction Described Me Jasmine Shabazz (Honorable Mention) 17

Broken Song of the Wren 19

"Our Most Inexhaustible Source of Magic" Lori Able 22

On Improvement 25

Patchwork People Caley Chastain 27

Room for Hope 29

Babies and Dreams Kayla Cordero 31

Hardships Bring Wisdom 33

Believing Breckon Gardner 35

Fine Arts Fiasco 37

Great Expectations of Life Rebecca Glenn 40

TARB for Tomorrow 42

Nature's Undiscovered Power Emily Kaufman 45

Saving South Carolina 48

Everything's Got a Story Jacob Ross 51

Finding My Way Home 53

The Fault in Us Drayton Rowe 55

What If? 57

Empathy in Storytelling Sarah Shtessel 59

Paving the Way for a Smoother Future 61

Proud Patriot Nicholson Tate 63

Palmetto Proud 65

Unknowing Inspiration Catherine Truluck 67

Till Violence Do Us Part … 69

Friends and Wallflowers Tristan Whaley 71

Seniors

The Guiding Hand 75

Finding Meaning through Mersault Abigail Fourspring (First Place) 77

Fostering a New Bilingual Culture in the Palmetto State 80

Planting Seeds of Hope Sarah Saddoris (Second Place) 83

D.S.S. (Defective, Struggling System) 83

Thank You, Mr. Vonnegut Alex Lybrand (Third Place) 87

Conscience 89

Braving the World Annika Imai (Honorable Mention) 91

His Textbooks 93

Writing about Writing Elizabeth Bock 93

Funding Our Future: Reducing Educational Inequality in South Carolina 97

Fire, Story Matthew Clapp 99

Eye to Eye 100

Contentment Daniel Finley 103

Address of the State 105

The Humanity of Words Abigail Harwell 106

The School System as an Investment 108

The Yooks, the Zooks, and the Danger of Nukes: How Dr. Seuss Conveys Mutually Assured Destruction to the Children of the United States Nathan Minsk 110

A Letter to Daddy 112

Becoming Royal John Owens IV 114

Two Worlds, One Child 116

Memories Sara Rodriguez 118

Education on the Half Shell 119

My "Elephant's Child" Stella Rounsefell 121

Speak Up: Cassandra's Story 123

Lessons from Hazel Ashley Rudd 125

Contributors 127

What People are Saying About This

Marjory Wentworth

We all worry that young people don't read the newspaper or care about politics or social issues; these fine essays, poems and stories prove otherwise. These students are passionate about social justice issues, and they understand the complex links between politics, public spending, and public policy. Their empathy for the least fortunate among us is deeply felt. This is what touched me the most about their writing.

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