NATCHITOCHES – The 17th annual Northwestern State University Louisiana High School Essay Contest is now open for submissions until June 1. The essay contest is open to all Louisiana students in grades 9-12 regardless of type of school institution, including students in all types of private educational environments, as well as home schooled students.
The 2025 contest theme, “Louisiana Dramas,” is an opportunity for Louisiana students to display their talents at interpreting, performing, and writing dramatic works. Entrants are invited to address one of the following prompts:
Write a literary analysis addressing the play or dramatic musical of their choice. Plays and musicals need not be set in Louisiana nor be authored by Louisiana authors. Entries should be approximately 1,000-2,500+ words, should have titles and should be typed (double spaced, 12-point font, standard margins).
Record either a performance of a song from a dramatic musical or a monologue from a play (memorized performances and dramatic readings are both eligible). Musicals and plays need not be set in Louisiana nor be authored by Louisiana authors. Entries should be between one to five minutes in length, and the title and author of the original text should be given. Recordings need not be made on professional equipment. For example, phone recordings are acceptable.
Write a short one act play set in Louisiana. Plays should be approximately 1,000-2,500+ words, should have titles and should be typed (double spaced, 12-point font, standard margins).
All entries should include a cover sheet with the student’s name, mailing address, phone number and e-mail address, school affiliation and the title of their entry. Entries may be mailed to the Louisiana Folklife Center, NSU Box 5688, Natchitoches, LA 71497 or sent via e-mail to Dr. Shane Rasmussen, rasmussens@nsula.edu with the subject line “2025 NSU Louisiana High School Essay Contest.”
The deadline for contest submissions is June 1. Prize-winning students will be notified by July 15.
The prizes for the contest winners are 1st place – $150; 2nd place – $100; and 3rd place – $50. In addition, essay contest winners will receive a $200/per semester NSU scholarship with a value up to $1,600 if they attend NSU for four years. This award is in addition to other scholarship awards that the student may receive from Northwestern. Winners must have at least a 20 ACT composite or 950 on the SAT and at least a 2.0 grade point average to be eligible. Essay winners need to submit proof of the award. Winning essayists will be invited to present their entry at the 17th Annual Louisiana Studies Conference to be held on the NSU campus on Saturday Sept. 13.
The winning print entries will also be published in the Louisiana Folklife Journal. Submission of an entry to the contest entails granting permission to publish the entry in the Louisiana Folklife Journal. Entries may be subject to minor revision prior to publication. Additional information is available on the website for the Louisiana Folklife Center at NSU: https://www.nsula.edu/folklife/highschoolessay/.
The contest is sponsored by the Louisiana Folklife Center, the Department of English, Languages, and Cultural Studies, the Office of Financial Aid and the Office of Recruiting at Northwestern.
Essay contest co-chairs are Jason Church, chief, technical services, National Center for Preservation Technology and Training and NSU faculty Dr. Daniel Gordy, assistant professor of criminal justice and English, Dr. Rebecca Macijeski, creative writing program coordinator and associate professor of English, Shea Montgomery, instructor of English and Rasmussen, director of the Louisiana Folklife Center and professor of English.
