Straker Foundation Writing Contest Open to High School Juniors in Muskingum County

MUSKINGUM COUNTY, Ohio- The Straker Charitable Foundation is giving all high school juniors of Muskingum County a chance to enter into the Mary Helen Straker writing competition.

The writing competition is in honor of Mary Helen Straker, who was one of the founders, but also a novelist, a memorist and someone who believed firmly in the value of reading and writing, according to Pam Kirst, program director at Straker Charitable Foundation .

The award is up to $500 for the three students selected per high school and a grand prize of $2,000 for the one winner of the entire county. 

“Susan and I are both retired English professors so we have a little bias in that regard and the prompt deals with why a student might return to Muskingum county in five years after their post secondary experience is done. So we kind of wanted to plant some seeds,” Kirst stated.

The grand prize winner will also be announced at a ceremony at Zane State College on March 24th.

This prompt idea was chosen because the foundation is interested in young people’s ideas about Muskingum County, says Susan Holdren, president and executive director of The Straker Foundation.

“We wanted to promote students coming back to Muskingum County or staying in Muskingum County to live and work. So we thought we would get started with this prompt with juniors in high school,” Holdren said.

The deadline has been extended until February 25th. To participate in the competition, students would need to reach out to their English teacher for further assistance.

Holdren mentioned that students in college credit plus are also eligible and would have to contact their English teacher they would have had in the high school setting.