STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: Wilmington High’s Evander Ragsdale Receives Prestigious Writing Award

Below is a press release from Wilmington High School:

WILMINGTON, MA — Evander Ragsdale from Wilmington High School has been selected for a 2024 Achievement Award in Writing, given by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE).

The NCTE Achievement Awards in Writing is a school-based writing program established in 1957 to encourage high school students to write and to recognize some of the best student writers in the nation. Only students who are juniors may participate. Schools in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, US territories, Canada, and American schools abroad are eligible to nominate students for the writing program.

Evander is a WHS junior who has taken Creative Writing and AP English Language & Composition this year. They are a passionate writer who has worked in a variety of modes, including poetry and script writing. This year’s NCTE prompt asked students to “Reflect on the many facets of your identity. Compose a personal piece that defines who you are and how you show it.” Evander was recognized for a nonfiction composition titled “How to Be Queer Without Choking.”

This year, schools nominated 633 students. From the United States, students were nominated from 44 states, as well as Guam and Washington, D.C. Internationally, teachers nominated students from Canada, Greece, Jordan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. Two to three independent judges evaluated each submission holistically on content, purpose, audience, tone, word choice, organization, development, and style.

For more information about the NCTE Achievement Awards in Writing, including past winners, see http://www.ncte.org/awards/achievement-awards-in-writing/.

The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) is the nation’s most comprehensive literacy organization, supporting more than 25,000 teachers across the preK–college spectrum. Through the expertise of its members, NCTE has served at the forefront of every major improvement in the teaching and learning of English and the language arts since 1911.