COVINGTON, Ga. - Newton County School System students won big at the 2018 Griffin RESA Regional Young Georgia Authors Writing Competition. Out of the 13-grade level competitions, NCSS brought home six first-place awards. Each of the students won their grade-level in the district competition and then competed with grade-level winners from the following school systems assigned to the Griffin Regional Educational Services Agency:: Butts, Fayette, Henry, Lamar, Pike, Spalding, and Thomaston-Upson. 

Student submissions, which could be in the form of short stories, poetry, essays, journals, personal narratives, reports, or other original student writing, were judged on four domains as reflected in the Georgia Performance Standards—ideas, organization, cohesiveness, and language. 

The Young Georgia Authors Writing Competition, sponsored by the Georgia Council of Teachers of English, is open to students in grades kindergarten through twelfth grade. Newton County School System’s Regional Winners, whose winning entries will now move on to the state-level competition for another round of judging, include:  

• Kindergarten, Oak Hill Elementary, Karter Williams, "Minecraft"
  
• 1^st Grade, Middle Ridge Elementary, Malachi Adesina, "Whales"
  
• 2^nd Grade, Porterdale Elementary, Amaya Davis, "Lions"
  
• 5^th Grade, Mansfield Elementary, Caroline Patil, "A Soldier’s Journey"
  
• 8^th Grade, Indian Creek Middle, Bailey Smith, "Dora Riv Kina: A Gruesome Finale"
  
• 11^th Grade, Eastside High, Maggie Camfield, "The Garden"
  

According to the GCTE, “the purpose of Young Georgia Authors writing competition is to encourage students to develop enthusiasm for and expertise in their writing, to provide a context to celebrate their writing successes, and to recognize student achievement in arts and academics.” 

“Writing is important across all disciplines, but as a former English teacher I value its power in the creative realm,” Benjamin Roundtree, NCSS director of elementary schools, said. “Our winners from Newton County Schools demonstrate that creative writing is indeed a craft, and they are fine examples of young masters. I congratulate them and wish them continued success.”