Ryan Gloyer students awarded for poetry
Four students in seventh-grade at Ryan Gloyer Middle School in the Seneca Valley School District were recognized for their award-winning poems.
The students were lauded at the 2023 Waldman Arts & Writing Awards on May 10 at Chatham University and hosted by the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh.
Megan Gates and Kayla Moslander won in the poetry-middle school category.
Leah Malley won in the education outreach-middle school category, and Abigail Mihalacki took best middle school poem, which also included a cash prize of $250.
Each year, students in the gifted education classes at Ryan Gloyer partner with Classrooms Without Borders for a Holocaust unit by bringing in Susan Stein, a teacher and playwright.
Stein speaks to students about diaries written by young people during the Holocaust and how they can use writing skills to impact their current lives.
“Since Ms. Stein’s first visit, we’ve been completing poems based on the diaries that we studied,” said Zeke Stroupe, gifted support teacher at Ryan Gloyer. “This year, my students completed a series of poems and blew me away.”
The students then met with another teacher to polish their work before submitting it for consideration in the contest.
The Waldman Arts & Writing Awards program allows students in grades six through 12 to compete for financial scholarships. Winners are honored with prizes and certificates.
