Constitution Day Winners announced
Nashua middle schooler and Milford senior cited
CONCORD _ A Nashua eighth-grader and a high school senior from Milford are winners of
this year’s New Hampshire Constitution Day Essay Contest.
Sasha Shrestha of Nashua’s Fairgrounds Middle School and Kayla Bullwinkel of Milford
High School will be honored at a reception on Nov. 18 at the N.H. Supreme Court, along with
18 local finalists sponsored by nine newspapers.
In 2004, Congress declared that “Constitution Day” should be observed in schools each year
on Sept. 17 with programs about the history of the Constitution. The New Hampshire contest,
for middle and high school students, is held as part of the Constitution Day observance. More
than 700 students submitted essays this year.
This year, students were asked to write about the conflict between our Constitution right to
free speech and the proliferation of cyberbullying – harmful comments about another person
transmitted via social media or texting.
Here is this year’s essay topic:
Considering the significance of our constitutional right to free speech, please
discuss whether punishment or other consequences should be imposed on
someone who conveys hurtful comments about another person via social
media or cellphone texting (cyberbullying), what those ramifications might be,
and who should impose them.
Both statewide winners cited the landmark Tinker vs. Des Moines Supreme Court case in
which the court ruled in 1969 that schools cannot prevent student speech or activity that does
not “materially and substantially disrupt or interfere” with education.
Sasha, who submitted her essay to The Telegraph in Nashua, wrote that while schools must
respect students’ rights to free speech, bullies should face consequences for online
harassment.
“Cyberbullying cannot be tolerated by schools when students intend to degrade or intimidate
someone, and excuse their behavior as a right of freedom of speech,”she wrote. “All schools
need to have policies on bullying online and off so that the school can stay a safe learning
environment.”
In her essay, also submitted to The Telegraph, Kayla wrote that schools do not have the right
to “invade” a student’s online account without cause, they do have a right to punish
cyberbullies who disrupt education.
“While the First Amendment must be protected, so must the lives and the education of
students,” she wrote. “When a student’s opportunity to learn is ripped from them as a result of
cyber bullying, schools have a right and a duty to intervene on behalf of the victim.”
Middle school and high school finalists were chosen from essays submitted to participating
newspapers whose circulation areas include their schools. The state Supreme Court chose the
statewide winners.
Here are this year’s finalists and their newspaper sponsors:
Here are the finalists for the 2014 Constitution Day Essay Contest:
From the Concord Monitor
Middle School
Ally Cagle - Rundlett Middle School
Nate Platt - Maple Street School
High School
Aine Foley - Winnisquam Regional High School
Jacob Filgate - Laconia High School
From The Eagle-Tribune/Derry News
High School
Louis LaPusata – Lndonderry High School
From Foster’s Daily Democrat
Middle School
Bella Daly - Saint Elizabeth Seton School
Hilda Barriozl - Saint Elizabeth Seton School
High School
Samantha Clough - Newmarket High School
Tristan O’Driscoll - Newmarket High School
From The Keene Sentinel
Middle School
Walter Cook - Keene Middle School
High School
Oriana Camara - ConVal Regional High School
From the NH Union Leader
Middle School
Reuben Nadeau - Stratford Public School
Adam Scheller - Grantham Village School
High School
Ried Sanborn - Granite Hill School
From The Portsmouth Herald
Middle School
Bridget Danielson – CMS
High School
Amanda Stryker - Portsmouth High School
From The Telegraph
Middle School
Sasha Shrestha – Fairgrounds Middle School – Statewide winner
Alyssa Berger - Fairgrounds Middle School
High School
Megan Hammes - Milford High School
Kayla Bullwinkel - Milford High School – Statewide winner