The California Armenian Legislative Caucus is holding two scholarship contests for the 2018 commemoration of the Armenian Genocide. California high school students in 9th through 12th grade are invited to participate in an essay contest and/or a visual arts contest to increase greater awareness of the Armenian Genocide on its anniversary. The visual arts scholarship is a joint venture between the California Armenian Legislative Caucus and the California Arts Council.
All winners will be contacted directly and announced to mainstream and Armenian media by the California Armenian Legislative Caucus on Monday, April 16, 2018. All winners will be awarded scholarships and acknowledged at the California Armenian Legislative Caucus’ annual Armenian Advocacy Day during a press conference on April 23, 2018 and receive special recognition from the members of the Armenian Caucus. Original artwork will be requested from visual arts applicants if they are selected as a finalist, for display in the California State Capitol.
Criteria for each contest are detailed below. Students may enter both contests, but submissions must be entered separately.
Essay Scholarship Awards:
First Place: $1,000
Second Place: $750
Third Place: $500
Visual Art Scholarship Awards:
First Place: $1,000
Second Place: $750
Third Place: $500
Submission Deadline for both contests is Friday, March 23, 2018.
Essay Criteria:
This year's writing prompt will call upon students to assume that:
- They have been asked to nominate a notable Armenian American to the California Hall of Fame, located at the California Museum in Sacramento CA.
- The nominee must have lived in California or have a strong connection to California.
- They are to share with the director, in the form of a memo, one person that should be featured in the Hall of Fame and the reason(s) that this person should so be honored.
The students' nomination should be written using the template below (and accompanying instructions):
Nomination to the California Hall of Fame
To: Amanda Meeker, Executive Director
California Museum
From: [Insert name]
[Grade] / [School Name]
Re: Nomination of a Notable Armenian American from California
to the California Hall of Fame
Date: [Insert date]
______________________________________________________________________
NAME OF PERSON BEING RECOMMENDED
(Insert here the name of the person you are recommending. Yes, it can be a relative or someone you know. It can also be someone you have only recently learned about. The person may be living or dead and must have lived in California or have a strong connection to California. Examples are William Saroyan, Kirk Kerkorian, Ana Kasparian, and Serj Tankian but there are many others.)
Do your research to find someone that you think will “motivate and inspire people to further their own dreams through your nominee’s unique story and accomplishments”.
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH (100 words max)
(Insert here a brief description of the life of the person you are recommending.)
FOCUSED SKETCH (500 words max)
(Insert here what you would want to have clearly presented in the exhibit about the person you are recommending. This is your chance to go into detail about this person, answering the question: What makes this Armenian American so notable?)
PERSONAL CONNECTION (100 words max)
(Insert here what caused you to want to recommend this person? Are you related to this person? Have they accomplished something that you too wish to accomplish? Does this person have a personal story that you somehow connect to? Share something about you that helps the museum exhibit visitor better understand why you recommended this person to be featured in the exhibit.)
TAKE AWAY (50 words max)
(Insert here either a thought or a question that you want the public to have in mind after learning about your nominee. In other words, what do you want the public saying to itself when it learns about the person you are recommending?)
MISCELLANEOUS (50 words max)
(Insert here anything else you might like to add. This can include any photos, drawings, charts, book excerpts, etc., but no links to any video and/or audio clips or any webpages.)
Please include your name, age, address, high school, grade, teacher’s name and subject area, phone number, and email address at the top of the essay.
Please save submissions using your name as the document title and email as an attachment to 1915essay@gmail.com. Any submissions sent after the deadline will not be accepted.
Visual Art Criteria:
This year’s theme is “Human to Human Interaction.” All applicants must develop their submission in keeping with this theme.
- Personal statement (300-500 words) explaining the artwork and how it connects to the theme of human-to-human interaction. In the top left corner, applicant must include: name, age, primary address, high school, grade, teacher’s name and subject (if applicable), phone number, and email address (this information will not count as part of the total word count).
- Only two-dimensional, visual art submissions will be accepted. Submission types are limited to drawings, paintings, photographs, digital illustrations, and graphic design.
- Submissions may not exceed an 11x17 frame and must weigh less than 25 pounds.
- Submissions may not include any nudity, excessive and/or graphic violence, racial slurs, derogatory and/or offensive language, profanity, and may not make use of or replicate existing artwork. All submissions must be original work created by the applicant.
Submission Contents
- Email subject, as well as titles of the attached document, must be formatted as follows: “CALC – Student Name – Title of Piece” (e.g. CALC – William Saroyan – The Time of Your Life).
- Submissions must include the personal statement and meet the criteria listed.
- Submissions must include a high-definition photograph of the artwork, be sure to take a close up picture with enough lighting for the reviewers to see the detail of the work. It is acceptable to submit up to five photos. Be aware of the lighting of the piece and provide different angles to showcase the depth of the artwork.
- Submissions must include one recent high-definition photograph of the applicant, suitable for publication (e.g. cap and gown photos, professional headshots, or quality photographs/close-ups of the applicant).
Visual arts scholarship winners will be selected by representatives of the California Arts Council and the California Armenian Legislative Caucus.
All submissions must be received by the California Armenian Legislative Caucus electronically on or before the submission deadline at 1915visualarts@gmail.com. Any submissions sent after the deadline will not be accepted.
For Historical Context for Both Contests
Websites
A Brief History of the Armenian Genocide:
http://www.Armenian-Genocide.org
Articles
New York Times –“Allies Punish Turks Who Murder” May 24, 1915
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9C03E6DB1338E633A25757C2A9639C946496D6CF
New York Times – “Armenians Dying In Prison Camps” August 21, 1916
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9800EED91E3FE233A25752C2A96E9C946796D6CF