Holly Blakley Wins
National English Award
It's been said over and over and over again. America's high school students don't do enough writing. Holly Blakley isn't one of those teenagers. The Huntington High School senior is among an elite group of 37 New York State students to win an Achievement Award in Writing.
"This is an impressive achievement," Huntington Superintendent James W. Polansky said. "Our entire school community is very proud of Holly. It is wonderful to see her talents recognized with this award."
Sponsored by the National Council of Teachers of English, the award is presented in recognition of excellence in writing. Ms. Blakley is one of just 21 Long Island students and 520 across the country to win the award, which was based upon teacher nominations, a writing sample and an impromptu essay written during a supervised 75-minute period.
The annually awards process begins during participants' junior year when students are nominated for the program and complete the writing requirements. Winners are announced in the fall of a student's senior year.
This year's writing award program drew 1,649 student nominations from teachers. The nominees came from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, the Virgin Islands and American schools abroad.