Racial Justice Essay Contest Awards $5,000 In Scholarships

BALDWIN COUNTY, Ala — The Baldwin County Community Remembrance Project recognized the eight winners of its Racial Justice Essay Contest during its annual Martin Luther King Day celebration on January 17 at the Foley Civic Center, Gulf Coast Media reported. A total of $5,000 in scholarships was awarded to Baldwin County high school students: $2,000 to Mykala M. Mason, an 11th grader at Daphne High School (first place); $1,500 to Lonyla Henton, a 12th grader at Foley High School (second place); and $750 each to Olivia Ryan, a 10th grader at Robertsdale High School and Joshua McClellan, a 12th grader at Spanish Fort High School. Honorable mentions went to Collin Abston, Rhyannan McGuire, Hayley Fancher and Dominic Luthje. Students from seven of the county’s nine public high schools and representatives from each high school grade level took part in the contest. It was adapted from a model introduced by the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery and asked students to examine the history of a topic of racial injustice and discuss its legacy today.