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The Griffith Rutherford Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is pleased to announce the winners of the State JAC, Southeast Division (7 southeastern states) and National levels of judging of the 2019-2020 Junior American Citizens Contest (JAC). This is an annual contest sponsored by the Griffith Rutherford Chapter to promote good citizenship, history, and patriotism. The National contest's theme for the 2019-2020 school year was "The 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment (to the Constitution)- American Women Rise and Shine", which was about the Women's Suffrage Movement. The Griffith Rutherford Chapter sponsors the JAC Contest for students in grades 3rd through 8th grade in public, private, charter, and home school situations. The students in 3rd through 5th grades could choose to compete in one or more contest areas which included designing a stamp, drawing a poster, writing original poetry, writing a short story, producing a banner, submitting a photo essay, or conducting and writing about a community service project completed in 2019. Those students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grades could compete in one or more categories, which included writing poetry, writing a short story, submitting a photo essay, drawing a poster, or conducting and writing about a community service project. The local part of this annual contest began in August of 2019 and ended this year in November 2020, with the national part of the contest results available in late July. Due to the issues surrounding the Covid-19 virus and additional health issues at other levels of judging, we are just now reporting the results of the 2019-2020 State JAC, Southeast Division and National JAC Contests.
This year the JAC Contest received 707 entries completed by 712 students from elementary and middle school situations. From the 35 local first place winners in 31 entries, the most entries ever sent by the Griffith Rutherford Chapter to the State JAC Contest level of judging, these students won the following State JAC awards in 2020: from Sunshine Elementary- 3rd grader Matthew Owens- 1st Place in Short Story; from Forrest W. Hunt Elementary- 5th grader-Chase Dotson-1st Place in Poster; from Trinity Christian School-5th graders Aiden Carpenter, Madison Heaton and Eli McEntyre- 1st Place in Banner, 6th graders Anna McEntyre- 1st Place Poem and Paige Heaton- 1st Place in Short Story, 7th graders Hannah Sanders- 1st Place in Poem, Kayla Terhardt and Jia Wilkerson- 1st Place in Short Story, and 8th grader Amaka Eneorji- 1st Place in Short Story; from Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy- 5th graders August Cook and Charlie Toney- 1st Place in Poem, Brooklyn Twitty- 2nd Place in Poem, Mason Royster and Lainey Beam- 1st Place in Short Story and Kailyn Johnson-Participation in Short Story, and 8th grader Crissa Griffin- 1st Place in Poster; from Rutherfordton Elementary- 3rd graders Kaelahb Collins- 1st Place in Stamp Design and Ava Watson- 1st place in Poem, 4th graders Lucy Sherburne- 1st Place in Stamp Design, Liam Enloe- 1st Place in Short Story and Jordan Mercer, Ashlynn Barrick and Olivia Harris- 1st Place in Banner, and 5th grader Sophie A. Pittman- 1st Place in Stamp Design; from Lake Lure Classical Academy- 3rd grader Francesca Cunto- 1st Place in Stamp Design; from Ellenboro Elementary- 5th grader Katherine Bailey- 1st Place in Stamp Design; and from Cliffside Elementary- 3rd graders Christopher McGinnis- 1st Place in Stamp Design and Matthew Wease- 1st Place in Poster, 4th graders Ariana Rodriguez-Chaves and Nataly Catstrellon-Jimenez- 1st Place in Poster, Merly Jimenez-Rodriguez- 1st Place in Poem, and Jackson Rodgers- 1st Place in Short Story, and 5th grader Zer.a Doby- 1st Place in Poster.
Our 33 State JAC first-place winners, in 29 entries, went on to Southeast Division judging where only first place is awarded. The following students received 1st Place for their entries: from Sunshine Elementary- 3rd grader Matthew Owens in Short Story; from Forrest W. Hunt Elementary- 5th grader Chase Dotson in Poster; from Trinity Christian School- 7th Grader Kayla Terhardt in Short Story; from Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy- 5th graders August Cook and Charlie Toney in poem, and Mason Royster and Lainey Beam in Short Story, and 8th grader Crissa Griffin in Poster; from Rutherfordton Elementary- 3rd graders Kaelahb Colins in Stamp Design and Ava Watson in Poem, and 5th grader Sophie A. Pittman in Stamp Design; from Lake Lure Classical Academy- 3rd grader Francesca Cunto in Stamp Design; and from Cliffside Elementary- 3rd grader Christopher McGinnis in Stamp Design.
The Griffith Rutherford Chapter is pleased to announce our largest number of National Junior American Citizens Contest winners. A certificate and medal were awarded, by the National JAC judges, to the following six students: August Cook 5th grader of Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy for 3rd Place in Poem, Ava Watson 3rd grader of Rutherfordton Elementary for 2nd Place in Poem, Charlie Toney 5th grader of Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy for 2nd Place in Poem, Mason Royster 5th grader of Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy for 2nd Place in Short Story, Matthew Owens 3rd grader of Sunshine Elementary for 1st Place in Short Story, and Kayla Terhardt 7th grader of Trinity Christian School for 1st Place in Short Story. We are so pleased to have had all the above listed winners at every level receive awards on a rather difficult theme that did indeed take time to research and plan before creating their entries.
In addition to the 712 students who submitted entries, the Griffith Rutherford Chapter's JAC Co-chairmen would like to thank their school principals, head masters, teachers and parents for choosing to participate in the contest and for teaching their students about the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution and the Women's Suffrage Movement.
