WASHINGTON—Fifty-two American high school students have been named state winners of the 16th annual National Peace Essay Contest, sponsored by the United States Institute of Peace. Each student will receive a $1,000 scholarship for his or her efforts, and will now compete for the 2003 national first prize, a $10,000 college scholarship.

The 52 winners will represent their states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia in a program for state-level winners in Washington, D.C. from June 21 to 26, 2003. Students will meet with senior U.S. government and foreign embassy officials, members of Congress, and other experts involved in the making of American foreign policy. They will also assume the roles of Russian and Chechen public officials and activists in a three-day problem solving simulation focusing on the conflict in Chechnya. The purpose of the exercise is to encourage the students to examine the justifications for the use of force in dealing with an ethnic conflict. At week's end, the national first-, second-, and third-place winners will be announced, and scholarships of $10,000, $5,000, and $2,500 respectively will be awarded at a banquet on June 25.

More than 1,250 students from American high schools throughout the United States and abroad submitted essays to this year's contest while nearly 5,000 students wrote essays. The 2003 theme challenged participants to examine the justifications for war. A list of winners, their schools, hometowns, essay topics, and faculty coordinators follows this release. [Go to list]

"It is crucial for our country that tomorrow's leaders understand that international conflict management and peace processes are essential components of U.S. foreign relations in the post-Cold War world," said Dr. Richard H. Solomon, president of the United States Institute of Peace. "The National Peace Essay Contest allows students to directly see the relationship between the world of learning and the world of public affairs and peacemaking. The United States needs a new generation of creative, resourceful, and innovative leaders. The Peace Essay Contest provides a jump-start to interesting this upcoming generation in careers dedicated to international affairs."

You can keep apprised of what students are doing during their week in Washington on the Institute's web site, www.usip.org. An electronic press kit with additional information on this year's state winners and the National Peace Essay Contest week will be available online soon.

2003 National Peace Essay Contest State Winners

Alabama
Ms. Celeste Fortenberry
"A Breach of Peace"
Mountain View Baptist School
Pinson, AL
Coordinator: Ms. Cathy Fortenberry

Alaska
Ms. Alicia Lane
"An Examination of the Justification of Two Wars"
A.J. Dimond High School
Anchorage, AK
Coordinator: Mr. Greg Brown

Arizona
Ms. Krista A. Sarin
"The Reality of War: A Manipulation of Justifications"
Xavier College Prep
Phoenix, AZ
Coordinator: Ms. Christine Weglarz

Arkansas
Mr. Will Schmidley
"The Afghan Conflict and the Spanish American War: A Study in Just War Contrasts"
Pulaski Academy
Little Rock, AR
Coordinator: Ms. Ginger Kidd and Mr. Bill Topich

California
Mr. Kevin Kiley
"Kuwait and Kosovo: The Harm Principle and Humanitarian War"
Granite Bay High School
Granite Bay, CA
Coordinator: Ms. Rita Prichard

Colorado
Ms. Michelle Box
"When Is War Justified?"
Gateway High School
Aurora, CO
Coordinator: Ms. Mary Lou Iverson

Connecticut
Ms. Katelyn Jennings
"Justice and War: A Lasting Dilemma"
Windsor High School
Windsor, CT
Coordinator: Ms. Diane Van Ausdall

Delaware
Ms. Meghan Pasricha
"The Marketing of a 'Just War': The Second World War and Desert Storm"
Sanford School
Hockessin, DE
Coordinator: Ms. Sadhana Pasricha

District of Columbia
Ms. Ryan Amari Tabb
"The Senseless Feuds"
Woodrow Wilson High School
Washington, DC
Coordinator: Mr. Jeffrey A. Schultz

Florida
Ms. Ali Glisson
"The Justification of War"
Academy of the Holy Names
Tampa, FL
Coordinator: Sis. Mary Patricia Plumb

Georgia
Ms. Susan Davis
"War: What Is It Good For?"
Davidson Fine Arts School
Augusta, GA
Coordinator: Ms. Aletha Y. Snowberger

Hawaii
Mr. Owen Martel
"The Justness of War"
Punahou School
Honolulu, HI
Coordinator: Ms. Hope Staab

Illinois
Ms. Bryn R. Pallesen
"The Absence of Just War"
Naperville North High School
Naperville, IL
Coordinator: Ms. Cherie Beckman

Indiana
Ms. Kelly E. Dietz
"The Justification of the Spanish-American and Gulf Wars"
North Central High School
Indianapolis, IN
Coordinator: Mr. William Broderick

Iowa
Mr. Matthew E. Mead
"Justification of War in the Vietnam and Gulf Wars"
Marshalltown High School
Marshalltown, IA
Coordinator: Mr. Brian L. Johnson

Kansas
Ms. Paula Burke
"Just War Theory in the Modern Age: Conflict in the Falklands and Iraq"
Salina High School South
Salina, KS
Coordinator: Ms. Karen Bastin

Kentucky
Ms. Katie Grogan
"The Futility of Just War Idealism"
Notre Dame Academy
Lakeside Park, KY
Coordinator: Ms. Diana Timmerding

Louisiana
Mr. Michael B. Hathorn
"Kosovo and World War I: Liberty By Force"
Pineville High School
Pineville, LA
Coordinator: Mrs. Jane Bacot Texada

Maine
Ms. Laila Sholtz-Ames
"Africa's Forgotten Wars: Angola, Ethiopia, and Eritrea"
Alternative Education Services
Exeter, ME
Coordinator: Dr. Laura Sholtz

Maryland
Ms. Sarah Calderone
"Only the Dead Have Seen the End of War."
Walter Johnson High School
Bethesda, MD
Coordinator: Mr. Theisen Healey

Massachusetts
Mr. Aaron Souza
"Justifying War: The United States in World War II and the Persian Gulf"
Mt. Greylock Regional High School
Williamstown, MA
Coordinator: Mr. Tom Murray

Michigan
Ms. Zahreen Ghaznavi
"Israel and NATO: Balancing the Morality of War"
Community High School
Ann Arbor, MI
Coordinator: Ms. Judith DeWoskin

Minnesota
Mr. Nedim Durakovic
"War in Pursuit of a Greater Peace"
The Blake School
Minneapolis, MN

Mississippi
Mr. Bryan Norwood
"Just War and a Christian Worldview"
Madison Central High School
Madison, MS
Coordinator: Ms. Susan Shivers

Missouri
Ms. Marjorie Harrington
"Justifying War"
Metro Academic and Classical High School
St Louis, MO
Coordinator: Mr. Wade Mayham

Montana
Ms. Alicia Warden
"The Definition of a 'Just War' Needs Re-evaluation: Peaceful Solutions Can Be Achieved"
Sentinel High School
Missoula, MT
Coordinator: Ms. Sue Babcock

Nebraska
Ms. Katie Scott
"The Justification of the Persian Gulf and Vietnam Wars"
Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart
Omaha, NE
Coordinator: Ms. Terri Anania

Nevada
Mr. Christopher M. Jackson
"The Path to War: A Conservative Utilitarian Analysis of International Conflict"
Reno High School
Reno, NV
Coordinator: Ms. Cathy Retterer

New Hampshire
Mr. Nate Lavey
"From California to Srebrenica: Rejection of a Just War"
The Derryfield School
Manchester, NH
Coordinator: Ms. Roberta Lavey

New Jersey
Mr. Andrew Colbert
"The Just War: Last Resort and Self-Defense in the Falklands and Afghanistan"
Home School
Lindenwold, NJ
Coordinator: Mr. Jay Colbert

New Mexico
Mr. Terence M. Merritt
"Justum Bellum"
Los Alamos High School
Los Alamos, NM
Coordinator: Ms. Nancy Schick

New York
Ms. Julie Cooper
"Just War Doctrine: East Timor versus the Al-Aqsa Intifada"
Hunter College High School
New York, NY
Coordinator: Mr. Irving Kagan

North Carolina
Mr. Edward Su
"Just War Thinking for the Twenty-First Century: A Globalist Perspective"
NC EFC Church Youth Group
Cary, NC
Coordinator: Ms. JoAnn Su

North Dakota
Mr. Ryan R. Thoreson
"World War II and Chechnya: The Past and Future of Just War Doctrine"
Shanley High School
Fargo, ND
Coordinator: Ms. Cathy Schwinden

Ohio
Ms. Jacqueline Grassi
"The Conditions and the Conduct: Jus ad Bellum and Jus in Bello in the Vietnam War and the War on Terrorism"
Hawken School
Kirtland, OH
Coordinator: Mr. Peter Golding

Oklahoma
Ms. Sarah Singletary
"Examining Motives: Tajikistan and Haiti"
Jenks High School
Tulsa, OK
Coordinator: Mr. Eric Fox

Oregon
Mr. Kent Saitoh
"The Just Use of Military Force: The Progression of U.S. Foreign Intervention"
Oregon Episcopal School
Portland, OR
Coordinator: Ms. Hope B. Stevens

Pennsylvania
Ms. Mira Shastry
"War for Peace: Justifications of the American Civil War and Persian Gulf War"
Freedom High School
Bethlehem, PA
Coordinator: Ms. Mangala Shastry

Puerto Rico
Ms. Viviana Gonzalez Irizarry
"World War I and the Persian Gulf War: Unjustifiable Wars"
Academia del Perpetuo Socorro
San Juan, PR
Coordinator: Prof. Marie Gillette

Rhode Island
Ms. Kaitlin J. McGovern
"Opposite Poles on a 'Just War' Spectrum: WWII and the Imminent Hypothetical Nuclear War"
St. Mary Academy - Bay View
Cranston, RI
Coordinator: Ms. Marion Wrye

South Carolina
Ms. Maura E. Cordial
"Is There Such a Thing as a 'Just War'?"
Beaufort High School
Beaufort, SC
Coordinator: Ms. Shirley Tuttle

South Dakota
Ms. Collette Roberts
"Justification of War: The Anglo-Zulu and Kosovo Wars"
St. Thomas More High School
Rapid City, SD
Coordinator: Ms. Marian V. Reed

Tennessee
Ms. Elizabeth Thomas
"Comparison of Justified and Unjustified Wars"
Dobyns-Bennett High School
Kingsport, TN
Coordinator: Mr. Kevin Fielden

Texas
Mr. Jeffrey Schonert
"Did We Kill For a Reason?"
Jesuit College Prep School
Dallas, TX
Coordinator: Mr. David Oglesby

Utah
Mr. Brandon Hopkins
"Extradition and the Justification of Two Wars: The War on Terrorism and the Pequot War"
The Waterford School
Salt Lake City, UT
Coordinator: Mr. James L. Hopkins

Vermont
Ms. Jennifer Richards
"Defining Justice: An Examination of the Persian Gulf and Spanish-American Wars"
Champlain Valley Union High School
Charlotte, VT
Coordinator: Mr. William Mares

Virginia
Ms. Suyeon Khim
"A Doctrine for Peace: Dismissing Violence as a Just Means"
The Madeira School
McLean, VA
Coordinator: Ms. Sheila Reilly

Washington
Mr. Josh Dzieza
"From World War II to the War on Terrorism: The Evolution of Morality and Warfare"
Charles Wright Academy
Olympia, WA
Coordinator: Dr. B.J. Smith

West Virginia
Mr. Mateusz Plucinski
"Peace and Stability in Two Wars"
The Linsly School
Glen Dale, WV
Coordinator: Mr. William L. Brubaker

Wisconsin
Ms. Amelia Hintzen
"In Search of Perfect War"
Homestead High School
Mequon, WI
Coordinator: Ms. Ann Reible-Cook

Wyoming
Ms. Madeline Caldwell
"War for Peace: Justifying Conflict in Kosovo and Northern Ireland"
Jackson Hole High School
Jackson, WY
Coordinator: Ms. Samantha Smith

International/Italy
Mr. Ryan Felix
"The Justification of War: Past and Present"
Naples American High School
FPO, AE, Italy
Coordinator: Ms. Elaine Gallant