CINCINNATI, OH – The Cincinnati Arts Association (CAA) is pleased to announce its Overture Awards Essay Contest 2012: An Underground Railroad Traveler.  The winner, chosen by three judges who are professional writers/historians/teachers, will be awarded a $250 prize.

ESSAY TOPIC
Contestants will put their imagination and research skills to work and write an essay on the Underground Railroad from the perspective of a young person who traveled north to freedom via this system.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?
All Tri-state students in grades 6-9 for the 2011-2012 school year are eligible.

DEADLINES / HOW TO APPLY
NOVEMBER 1, 2011
o    Send a notice of intent to apply to overtures@cincinnatiarts.org
o    Write “Essay Contest” in the subject line and include in the message your name, address, telephone number, school, grade and an e-mail address.

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 (entries received after this deadline will not be considered)
o    Submit four stapled copies of your manuscript with the entry form. The form can be downloaded at  www.cincinnatiarts.org/essaycontest
o    No application fee.
o    Mail materials to:
                                    The Overture Awards
                                    Cincinnati Arts Association
                                    650 Walnut Street
                                    Cincinnati, OH  45202-2517

CRITERIA
All papers must be:
    original work
    no more than ten pages in length
    typed, double-spaced and have a one-inch margin on all sides of the page

Submissions will be judged on the following criteria:
    Quality of content:  the essay is presented clearly and its material is well organized, well developed and accurate.
    Originality:  the essay topic is approached with creativity and imagination.
    Style:  the essay must have a clear structure with a title, introduction, body and conclusion.  Use paragraphs and be sure punctuation, spelling and grammar are correct.
    Footnotes are not required, but a bibliography is highly recommended.

Several resources are listed at www.cincinnatiarts.org/essaycontest as suggestions; additional research is recommended.

JUDGING/RESULTS
The winner of the contest will be announced no later than March 15, 2012.  The decisions of the judges are final. 
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ABOUT THE OVERTURE AWARDS
The Overture Awards Scholarship Competition – the largest locally run arts scholarship competition in the country – annually  provides a $2,500 scholarship to six area high school students for education and training expenses, with 18 finalists each winning a $500 scholarship.  Each year, nearly 500 students are nominated by their schools to compete in one of six artistic disciplines: Creative Writing, Dance, Instrumental Music, Theater, Visual Art or Vocal Music. The Overture Awards was developed to recognize, encourage and reward excellence in the arts among Tri-state students in grades 9-12. It also provides students an opportunity to share their talents and interests among their peers in a supportive environment outside of their individual schools.

The Overture Awards is administered by the Cincinnati Arts Association, which operates and manages the Aronoff Center and Music Hall. The program also relies on hundreds of volunteers from the community who help raise funds, adjudicate and manage the competitions, and nurture the program.  Now in its 16th year, The Overture Awards was launched in 1996 by the Cinergy Foundation (now Duke Energy) and Leadership Cincinnati (a Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce program).