Harter Secrest & Emery LLP (HSE) is pleased to announce the winners of the firm’s 6th annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Essay Contest. The winning students, teachers and their schools are:
- 3rd Grade Winner: Haven Monk-George, James P. Duffy School #12
- Teacher: Ms.Tobin
- 4th Grade Winner: V’Aysha Brown, Dr. Louis A. Cerulli School #34
- Teacher: Mrs. Stephanie Mros
- 5th Grade Winner: Nagelis Acosta, Pinnacle School #35
- Teacher: Mrs. Andino
Open to Rochester City School District students in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade, 23 classrooms participated in the contest, with a total of 91 essays submitted. The topic of this year’s essay contest was: Discuss this quote from Dr. King and how it relates to your life: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’”
The winners at each grade level, selected by HSE attorneys and staff, were announced in their classrooms on Friday. In addition to each student reading his or her winning essay, the student and teacher received awards. Winning students were awarded a special personal prize and a $50 gift card, and teachers were given a $200 gift card to be used for school supplies.
Each winning student’s classroom will receive a $75 pizza party gift card. All participating classrooms will be entered into a raffle for an additional pizza party–one for each grade level–and each participating classroom will receive a Certificate of Appreciation.
“Each year we are inspired by the quality of the thought put into the submitted essays. The Rochester City School District’s 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students take our essay questions to heart and the content of the essays express the passion and dedication necessary to make Dr. King’s dream a reality,” said Megan Dorritie, a partner at HSE and chair of the firm’s Diversity Committee. “This essay contest is very rewarding to all participating parties in many ways.”
Harter Secrest & Emery LLP
Founded in 1893, Harter Secrest & Emery LLP is a full-service law firm providing legal services to clients ranging from individuals and family-owned businesses to Fortune 100 companies and major regional institutions. With offices in Rochester, Buffalo, Albany, Corning, and New York, NY, the firm comprises more than 120 attorneys and total staff of 260.