The winners of this year’s Rotary Club of St. Joseph-Benton Harbor Scholarship Essay Contest have been announced.
The Rotary’s Jenny Fee tells us school districts throughout Berrien County are invited each year to enter one student into the contest. When the day of the event comes, the student is told what the essay topic will be, and then they’re given time to write their entry.
The topic this year was mental health and how schools respond to mental health.
Fee says the students showed a lot of insight.
“I think we as adults underestimate how knowledgeable and how much experience our students have, whatever the topic is, but particularly I think with mental health, I think the way youth today experience mental health and how it’s discussed and the openness of it amongst their peers is very different from how we as adults have experienced mental health issues at that age,” Fee said.
Fee says Berrien County has some talented young essayists.
The top prize winner this year was Marina Ferreira, a senior at Lakeshore High School. She received a $1,000 scholarship.
Second prize, with a $750 scholarship, went to Hannah Webb, a senior at St. Joseph High School.
Third place, with a $500 scholarship, went to Kaylee Bradshaw, a senior at Grace Christian School.
