May 14, 2018 / Boston, MA – The League of Women Voters of Massachusetts (LWVMA) has announced the winners of its “Get In the Game and Vote!” High School Video Contest, part of LWVMA’s election 2018 statewide voter engagement initiative.
The winners are:
Second Place: Zichen Zhou, Skyeler Sandison, Leah Baker, Nick Qvarnstrom, Romell Brown, Eli Patrick, Nauset Regional High School (
Change)
Third Place: Ashley Murphy, Meghan Joyce, Katelyn McDevitt, Quincy High School, (
Democracy)
Honorable Mention:
- Ryan Hamilton, Sam Bradley, and Aidan Michaud, Marblehead High School (Are You Going to Vote?)
- Gabrielle Rooks, Ira Hysi, To’Landa Torres, Annalie Gilbert Keith, Maria José Campos, Clara Richardson-Omamo, Frannie Joseph, Lillian Ying, Elizabeth LaValley, Stoneleigh-Burnham School (How Can We Be the Change?)
- Jack Our, Jordan Our, Isabel Merl, Nauset Regional High School (I Can Vote Clearly Now)
- Matt Lawn, Waltham High School (Think About the Youth)
- Jenna Wolf, Acton-Boxborough Regional High School (Vote for a Better Tomorrow)
Carly Schauer and Cannan Whittier, Marblehead High School (
Voting)
- Sophie Hauck and Grace Martin, Marblehead High School (Voting: A Textbook American Tradition)
- Liam Mawn, Monomoy Regional High School (Youth Voting Rap)
In addition to the individual prizes, West Roxbury Academy in Boston will receive the Catalyst Award, special recognition for a single school’s inspiring submissions to the contest. The following students from West Roxbury Academy will be recognized with this award: Odalys Abreu, Scath Bograd, Kamari Boseman, Kyle Bourget, Isaiah Brown, Miguel Cabrera, Idalys Calderon, Alex Demosthene, Winda Durand, Phaica Etiverne, Quavante Granberry, Gamailel Pena, and Katherine Peguero.
To help get out the vote for the 2018 Massachusetts elections, the League invited Massachusetts high school students to create 30-second public service announcements encouraging eligible voters to register and turn out at the polls. LWVMA will widely distribute and publicize the winning videos and others from the contest as part of MOVE 2018, a statewide voter education and engagement initiative, beginning in late summer and leading up to the November election.
Over 250 students statewide participated in the contest. The Judging Committee–composed of LWVMA members, as well as outside judges Hilary Allard (The Castle Group), Kei Kawashima-Ginsberg (CIRCLE, Tufts University), and Nicole Porter (DigitalMass)–selected the winning submissions based on their clear and compelling messages, memorable content and delivery, and creativity.
The winners will receive awards of $500 (first place); $250 (second place); $100 (third place); and $50 (honorable mention). West Roxbury Academy will receive a prize of $250 for the Catalyst Award. An award ceremony at the Massachusetts State House will be scheduled for June.
“The terrific videos we received demonstrate, yet again, that young people are not spectators to our democracy, but are leading the way for all of us” said LWVMA Executive Director Meryl Kessler.
“We are proud not only of the winners but of all the young people who stepped up to share their important messages through this contest,” said Mary Ann Ashton, president of LWVMA.
The contest was sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Massachusetts Citizen Education Fund, which supports programs designed to encourage the active and informed participation of citizens in democracy and increase understanding of public policy issues.
Support for this program was provided by the Salem Five Charitable Foundation and the Lincoln & Therese Filene Foundation.
