Pennsylvania Supreme Court

Student essay and coloring contests announced

As the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania prepares to celebrate its 300th anniversary, students across the state are invited to salute the historic occasion by participating in essay and coloring contests.

“Recognizing the crucial role that civics education plays in the public’s understating of the judiciary, we are excited to expand our 300th celebration efforts to involve students at all grade levels,” Chief Justice Max Baer said.

“The members of the Court and I look forward to hearing from students all across Pennsylvania about how they view the work and role of the Court throughout our history.”

Both contests are free and open to Pennsylvania students including those in public, private, charter, cyber charter or home schools.

The deadline for entries is May 6.

The coloring contest is open to all students ages 5-11 and will give young students the opportunity to create their own judge. After printing the cartoon judge cutouts, students can choose which judge they want to color and design using their creativity as their guide.

Students and parents are encouraged to submit photo entries on Twitter by tagging @PACourts and using #Supreme300 or by mail following the instructions outlined below.

The essay contest is open to all students in grades 3 through 12, with essays being judged on creativity, overall quality and adherence to the questions:

Question (Grades 3-5) - Why is the Pennsylvania Supreme Court important?

Question (Grades 6-12) - Which Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice inspires you and why?

Essay entries can be submitted by email to CommunicationsOffice@pacourts.us or by mail to:

AOPC Communications

c/o Stacey Witalec

601 Commonwealth Ave.

Harrisburg, PA 17106

If submitting by mail, entrants should include the following information on a separate piece of paper: full name, school name, city, state, phone number, email (if applicable), teacher name and teacher email (if applicable).

Entries in both contests will be judged by Pennsylvania Supreme Court justices, along with members of the Supreme Court 300th Celebration Committee.

Winners will be announced and recognized during the 300th anniversary celebration in May.