County Commissioner’s Association of WV announces Essay Contest winners

A student from Greenbrier County is among the top finishers in this year’s essay contest held by the County Commissioners’ Association of West Virginia (CCAWV). Nine other students from different counties also received awards ranging from first place to honorable mention.
Lydia Jackson of Eastern Greenbrier Middle School was one of four students to receive honorable mention honors in the contest. Jackson received help from teacher Michael Anderson in submitting the entry.
Finley Carpenter of Belington Middle School took first place in the contest that the association holds annually for eighth-grade students. The winning entry was among more than 230 essays submitted from 40 classrooms in 25 counties. The teacher who helped submit the winning essay is Sarah Harris.
“I’m very impressed with the participation in this year’s contest,” Meagan James, program coordinator for the association, said. “It surpassed expectations. I want to thank all the teachers involved for taking valuable classroom time to encourage their students to learn about the county commission. I’m looking forward to the future and seeing the contest continue to grow. Congratulations to the winning students.”
During April, which was National County Government Month, the CCAWV encouraged students to learn about the role of county commissioners and write essays of up to 500 words on the topic, “How does my county commission make my life better for me?” Winning students receive monetary prizes and are honored by their county commissions.
The top 10 finishers:
First Place
Finley Carpenter – Barbour County. Winning Teacher: Sarah Harris. School: Belington Middle School
Second Place
Kawner Cusack – Putnam County. Teacher: Jack Runion. School: Hurricane Middle School
Russell Adkins – Cabell County. Teacher: Jevon Hayes. School: Huntington East Middle School
Third Place
Olivia Toney – Mason County. Teacher: Frances Blake. School: Hannan Jr/Sr High School
Julia Murdock – Wayne County. Teacher: Rachel Aldridge. School: Buffalo Middle School
James “Brody” McDaniels – Upshur County. Teacher: Kayce Wooten. School: Buckhannon Upshur Middle Schoon
Honorable Mention
Lorelei Williams – Marshall County. Teacher: Kim Ghaphery. School: Moundsville Middle School
Abigail Keen – Tucker County. Teacher: Elspeth DeLeurere. School: Davis-Thomas Elementary Middle School
Scotlyn Forney – Morgan County. School: Warm Springs Middle School
Lydia Jackson – Greenbrier County. Teacher: Michael Anderson. School: Eastern Greenbrier Middle School
Alexis Herndon – Braxton County. Teacher: Lori Dittman. School: Braxton County Middle School
Samantha Cales – Summers County. Teacher: Jeremy Wood. School: Summers County Comprehensive High School