Carson City School Board chooses national anthem controversy as essay topic

The Carson City School District Board didn’t hold back in choosing a challenging topic for the 2016 American Citizen Essay Contest Tuesday night at its School Board meeting.

“In your opinion, how do you feel about the recent controversy concerning those refusing to stand for the national anthem” is the topic of this year’s contest. Board members decided on this topic out of 14 topics given to them to consider.

The contest, which has been running since 2001, is sponsored by the School Board to provide students an opportunity to reflect on their patriotism.

“The contest has become a nice tradition for the school district,” said Superintendent Richard Stokes.

The students will have several weeks to complete their writing, and volunteers from the school and community will read and judge the essays to determine a first, second and third place winner for the elementary, middle and high school levels. Each winner will also receive a cash prize and the first place winners from each level will be invited to read their essay to the School Board during their meeting before Thanksgiving.

“These essays help raise awareness of matters of public importance,” Stokes said. “It helps students reflect on the benefits of living in the U.S. and to better hone a student’s writing skills is a good opportunity.”