SPJ/JEA High School Essay Contest

Upload by Feb. 19, 2025, 11:59 p.m. Central time/9:59 p.m. Pacific time.

Topic for spring 2024:

Media literacy is connected to democracy. What are some top strategies to engage people of all ages with media literacy and democracy?

Deadline

Upload by Feb. 19, 2023, 11:59 p.m. Central time/9:59 p.m. Pacific time.

Submit your essay

Resource for 2023-2024

Learn more about media literacy and democracy by watching the “Trustworthy” documentary.

“Trustworthy” is a 90-minute documentary that chronicles a 5,300-mile journey across America to explore how the growing crisis of trust in media threatens our democracy, and whether we can find common ground. From small towns to urban enclaves, filmmakers speak with journalists, experts and everyday Americans across the political spectrum about how we got to this critical moment, how we can become better news and information consumers, and how we can come together to rise above the misinformation and discourse aimed at dividing our communities.

TRUSTWORTHY_TRAILER from Stephany on Vimeo.

Request a free screening of the documentary.

About the award

The Sigma Delta Chi Foundation of the Society of Professional Journalists and the Journalism Education Association want to increase high school students’ knowledge and understanding of the importance of independent media to our lives. National winners of this essay contest receive scholarship awards.

Who is eligible?

All students enrolled in grades 9-12 in U.S. public, private and home schools within the United States. Students must submit original work.

Format?

The essay should be 300-500 words. Entries may be typed or handwritten but must be double-spaced.

Entering

Each submission to the essay contest must be accompanied by a $5 entry fee.

Award recognition

First Place: $1,000 scholarship

Second Place: $500 scholarship

Third Place: $300 scholarship

Scholarships are funded by the Sigma Delta Chi Foundation of the Society of Professional Journalists.

Winners will be notified via email, and the names of winners will be announced in May. Winning essays also will be posted on JEA.org and SPJ.org.

Official rules

Section I – General Rules

  1. Contestants must enter through JEA’s contests and awards portal.
  2. Contestants must compose an original essay with limited guidance from others.
  3. The Journalism Education Association and Society of Professional Journalists will have the right to edit, publish or otherwise duplicate any essay entered into the contest without payment to the author.
  4. Due to the volume of entries received, only national winners will be contacted with the results.
  5. The entry fee for this contest is $5 per essay.

Section II – Qualifications for Contestants

  1. The contest is open to all students in grades 9-12 in public, private and home schools within the United States.
  2. Contestants may submit only one essay entry during any given contest year.
  3. No individual having previously won a national SPJ essay scholarship will be eligible to compete at any level of the competition again.

Section III – Contest Rules

  1. Participants must write on the official topic.
  2. Each entry must include the online entry form.
  3. Essays may be typewritten or legibly handwritten but must be double-spaced.
  4. Essays must contain at least 300 words but no more than 500 words. Every word of the essay is counted. This does not include the title, bibliography or footnotes.
  5. Any quotations or copyrighted material used in the essay must be identified properly. Failure to identify non-original material will result in disqualification.
  6. Essays must be written in English.
  7. Any protest in the conduct of the contest must be made immediately. The JEA executive director will decide all protests in conformity with the contest rules. The decision of the executive director is final, and no higher appeals will be recognized.

Section IV – Judging and Timing

  1. Judging will be completed by a panel of qualified judges.
  2. Judges will not discuss or compare essays being judged until all essays have been judged.
  3. Only judges can assign a penalty or award points.

Section V – Scoring of Contest

Scoring procedures at all levels of the contest will be identical.

  1. Material Organization (Logical interpretation of the subject, adherence to topic): 40 points
  2. Vocabulary and Style (Phrasing and continuity): 30 points
  3. Grammar, Punctuation, Spelling: 20 points
  4. Neatness: 5 points
  5. Adherence to contest rules (prepared in the proper format): 5 points