Student Literary Competition 2000 - 2001
 

National Student Literary Competition Winners Announced

The winners of the 2000-2001 Student Literary Competition, hosted by Kirkwood Community College and coordinated by Allison York, were recently announced. The First Place awards were presented to Kim Harmon, Lane Community College, for her one-act play titled “Electives,” Danielle Pomaville, Delta College, for her short story “Clothespins and Seashells,” Anthony Rodriguez, Bakersfield College, for his poem titled “Christmas with Kym,” and Ratina Wollner, Lane Community College, for her essay “Finding Bridget.”

The Second Place awards were won by Jeni L. Patterson, Johnson County Community College, for the one-act play “Saving Grace,” Craig MacBride, Humber Community College of Applied Arts and Technology, for a short story titled “Loaves of Bread,” John Michael Day, Phoenix College, for his  poem titled “Cedar Island, NC,” and Temima Wohlgelernter, St. Louis Community College, for her essay titled “Slipping into Greatness.” 

The Third Place awards were given to Myriah S. Connolly, Leeward Community College, for her one-act play “Impossible Connection,” Rachel Burks, Sinclair Community College for her short story titled “Easter Mice,” Christopher Pommier, DeAnza College, for his lyric titled “To Let the Night’s New Air In,” and Dana Martin, Bakersfield College for her essay “The Elephant.”  Honorable mention was given to Nancy McCurry, Paradise Valley Community College for her essay titled “Taking Wing.”

Under the leadership of Kirkwood Community College, the competition included over 60 literary works from League colleges. A catalog of all entries is currently being produced by Kirkwood and will be mailed to all League members this fall.

The jurors for this year’s Student Literary Competition were John Olive (One-Act Play), John McNally (Short Story), Mary Swander (Poetry) and John Price (Personal Essay).  Each of the judges has published works and won awards for their literary pieces. 

John Olive’s most recent play, The Summer Moon, won a 1997 Kennedy Center Award for Drama, and he is currently working on a novel for young adults titled SmartAss.  John McNally’s Troublemakers, a collection of short stories, won the Iowa Short Fiction contest and was published in the fall 2000.  He has also received a number of awards including the Wisconsin Institute for Creating Writing fellowship.  Mary Swander has won numerous awards for her work including the Whiting Award, two Ingram Merrill Awards, the Carl Sandburg Literary Award, and many others.  Her most recent work is an edited collection of essays called The Healing Circle.  John Price currently teaches literature and creative nonfiction at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.  His essays have appeared in a variety of publications, and he was recently selected for best Spiritual Writing 2000.