Educator Essay Contest Resources

Incorporating the essay into your classroom

Spotlight on: Using external opportunities to support student skill building and engagement
Spotlight on: Special projects as teaching tools, an interview with Lily Crist

Considering the standards

Spotlight on: Using the MRH Essay Contest in the context of NGSS and CCSS

Keeping up to date

The VMP Chronicle, our newsletter for educators: Subscribe | Review past issues
The Hilleman Chronicle, our newsletter for science and history enthusiasts: Subscribe | Review past issues

Have suggestions? Let us know what you would find helpful by submitting this form, so we can make sharing the contest easier for you!

What I love seeing in the essays is students are clearly using the writing process
as a way to explore their own connections to the natural world, to science,
and to ways that we can build a better tomorrow.

– Contest partner educator

I wanted to thank the Maurice Hilleman organization again for an incredible experience.
Taking part in this competition has been so rewarding, and I’ve learned so much.

– Essay contest winner

Critical thinking is a superpower if you think about it, and the contest is a tool to help develop
this superpower. In today’s world, it is especially important.

– Contest collaborator

Thank you guys so much for organizing this event! I really enjoyed it and
it was wonderful hearing from the speakers and the other contest winners.
I feel really inspired! Thank you guys for giving me this opportunity!

– Essay contest winner

Reviewed by Hilleman Film Team on April 29, 2025