Second Annual UNA-USA Essay Contest Guidelines and Details 2021

Essay Topic: The Importance of Youth in the Mission of the United Nations to Counteract Climate Change

Essay Contest Guidelines:

• Contest is open to all middle school students enrolled in the 6th, 7th or 8th grade in the Alachua County Public, Private, and Charter Schools in the 2021-2022 academic year.
• The contest must be entered through the UNA-USA.
• The essay must have a reference or citation page listing sources to back up ideas discussed in the essay.
• The essay must be typed double spaced, in 12 point font (Arial or Times New Roman preferred), in Microsoft Word or a compatible format.
• The essay must have 1-inch margins.
• The essay must include page numbers.
• The essay must have a length of between 600 and 700 words.

Essays not meeting the above criteria will not be eligible.

Any essay containing plagiarized material will result in rejection of the essay.

Deadline: Essays must be submitted via the UNA-USA Essay Contest email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by December 3, 2021, 11:59 p.m. (EST).

Prizes: 1st place—$300; 2nd place—$200; 3rd place—$100.

All essays will become the property of the UNA-USA. Essays may be posted to UNA-USA website or appear in UNA-USA Newsletter and in other related local newsletters, publicity and announcements.

Winners will be honored and invited to read their essays at the Annual UNA-USA Meeting in January, 2022 where awards and prizes will be presented.

Judging Criteria: Judging criteria will include the following areas: (1) Subject-matter—Relevance to the proposed topic; original or arresting subject, quality of insight, and thought, unity of theme; imaginative imagery and concrete detail, (2) Organization—Arrangement of material; clarity of description or argument; management of transitions, and (3) Grammar and Style—Command of the written language.

Submissions: Entry forms and essays must be submitted by attaching them to an email to the following address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Include in the e-mail subject line the Contest Name and Student Entrant’s Name.
This activity is neither sponsored nor endorsed by Alachua County Public Schools.

Further information is available under Essay Contest at the UNA-USA email:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Download Application here.

Download Flyer here