Local Students Honored for Essays

Local Students Honored for Essays

In partnership between the Dysart Unified School District, the City of Surprise and the City of El Mirage, students across the district were invited to participate in the My El Mirage and My Surprise Essay Contest in November of 2021. Students were given the prompt: What Makes Your City Extraordinary?

“The school district and the city are intertwined,” shared Shelley Isai, Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment Director, 9-12. “We are fortunate to have a city council that believes in investing in their youth and the public school system. To this end we wanted to do a project that honored the city’s commitment to students and their voice.”

More than 100 students in grades 3-12th submitted their essays with schools choosing the top 58 district-wide. The writings were evaluated based on understanding of city services/amenities, creativity, clarity, sincerity of thought, and proper grammar. “We are so excited to celebrate our student’s writings with the City of El Mirage and City of Surprise,” said Dana Knoebel, Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment Director, Prek-8. “We love sharing our student’s voices with the authentic audience of our communities.”

Winners from Surprise were selected in specific grade bands and were honored February 15 at the Surprise city council meeting including: Caleb Leavitt from Freedom Traditional Academy, grade 3-4 division, Kacey Dunn from Canyon Ridge School for 5-8th grade, and Valerie Ortega from Valley Vista High School who won for the high school division.

Abel Mendoza from El Mirage Elementary School poses with his certificate at the El Mirage City Council meeting on March 1, 2022

Mayor Skip Hall and members of the city council recognized the three students and took photos celebrating their wonderful essay submissions with excerpts included below.

Caleb Leavitt: “Surprise is my favorite place in Arizona. I enjoy everything that Surprise has to offer and really like my school, Freedom.”

Kacey Dunn: “A big reason why so many love living in Surprise is all the scenic views! The city is surrounded by views of the mountains which many of them offer hiking trails at.”

Valerie Ortega: “Surprise has an exceptional sense of community and lots to offer with great places to go for food, events to attend, and communal activities to participate in.”

“The City of Surprise partnered with Dysart Unified School District on our first annual City of Surprise Essay Contest,” shared Mayor Skip Hall. “It is important that we engage our youth and this essay partnership was an excellent opportunity to do so. Hearing from our local students while utilizing an educational format regarding their thoughts on why Surprise is a great community to be part of was important to us as well.”

The City of El Mirage structured their essay winners a bit differently and awarded the top three students all from El Mirage Elementary: Clare Ebere; 1st place, Abel Mendoza; 2nd place, and Alleeah Gomez; third place.

All three students and their families were invited to attend the City of El Mirage Council meeting on March 1. The students were recognized and received ribbons and certificates.

Kacey Dunnn from Canyon Ridge School and Caleb Leavitt from Freedom Traditional School were honored for their essay submissions at the Dysart Governing Board meeting on February 23, 2022.

Claire Ebere: “I love El Mirage because it is a good city, and you can have fun at the park with your friends.”

“I want to thank all of the students who participated in the ‘Why El Mirage is Extraordinary’ essay contest and congratulate our three winners,” said El Mirage Mayor Alexis Hermosillo. “Reading your inspirational messages really made me proud to be an El Mirage Elementary School alum, and I encourage you to keep up the great work—especially when it comes to believing in our City.”

Student winners from both categories were recognized at Dysart Unified School District Governing Board meeting on February 23 where they received gift cards to local businesses.

Danielle Edgerton coordinated the dual city essay contest with support from teachers, administrators, and city leaders.

“It has been such a rewarding experience to partner with both the City of Surprise and the City of El Mirage to honor our scholars and writers,” shared Edgerton. “The essays submitted by all of the students were sincere celebrations of their schools and communities.”