Teen Authors Promote Diversity—and Win Scholarships and Book Sales on Amazon.com
Booz Allen supports B’nai B’rith contest in which high school students create books that teach tolerance and equality to younger children.
They haven’t yet cracked the New York Times Bestseller List, but A Short Story and That’s What Makes Me Special have already gained recognition as two of the winning books entered in B’nai B’rith International’s Diverse Minds Youth Writing Challenge.
Booz Allen Hamilton underwrote the well-received writing contest, which gave teens across the country a chance to write original children’s books that could earn them college scholarships, as well as professional publication and sales of their books on amazon.com.
The contest was part of B’nai B’rith’s educational initiative to promote tolerance, and all books featured prominent themes about diversity.
Says Booz Allen principal Joe Suarez, “It was an opportunity for students to teach younger children about the value of equality, to combat bigotry, and to improve the world.”
Joe Suarez
Booz Allen sponsored the challenges in Washington, D.C. and in Colorado Springs, where the firm has been promoting tolerance for years as part of a broader diversity initiative. Writing contests were also held in New York City, Minneapolis/St. Paul, and Los Angeles.
The first-place book in Colorado Springs was A Short Story, written by Daniel Gilbert and illustrated by Alison Doesrsch. Washington, D.C.’s winning book was That’s What Makes Me Special, written and illustrated by Peyton Wood. Targeted to children age 5 to 10, the books are available in hardback on amazon.com and will be distributed to regional elementary schools, public libraries, and any community organization that requests them.
“This was a major outreach effort in terms of inter-communal understanding,” says vice president Dov Zakheim, who attended the Washington awards ceremony in May 2008. “By involving young people, we create a baseline for tolerance as they mature into adults and become community leaders. Youngsters of all ethnic and racial groups got involved and applied their efforts to a common purpose.”
First-place winners received a $5,000 college scholarship and publication of their books. Second- and third-place winners received $2,000 and $1,000 scholarships, respectively. Teachers or youth leaders who oversaw the creation of the first-place submission received a $500 stipend to use for classroom materials.
“The challenge not only provided our office with a chance to further interact and strengthen communications with the community, but also gave the community an opportunity to consider something they don’t always think about—diversity,” says Colorado Springs vice president Kurt Stevens, who participated as a judge in his region’s writing challenge. He and Suarez attended the awards event at the new pavilion at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, where the winning author read his book to the audience.
A Challenge that Benefits Students as well as Their Communities
The roster of judges for the B’nai B’rith book challenge brought together representatives from respected and recognized organizations whose political and social views sometimes differed, but who shared a commitment to support these types of programs in their neighborhoods.
Washington, D.C. judges included Booz Allen Chairman & CEO Dr. Ralph Shrader; Cristián Samper, Acting Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution; Dennis Hayes, President & CEO of the NAACP; Loretta King, civil rights attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice; Patricia Steelman, Children’s Collection Development librarian at the Library of Congress; and representatives from the U.S. Department of Education, Girl Scout Council of the Nation’s Capital, and others.
In Colorado Springs, judges included Col. Marty France, Astro Department Head at the U.S. Air Force Academy; Rosemary Harris, President of the Colorado Springs NAACP; David P. Csintyan, President of the Chamber Colorado Springs; and representatives of the Gay and Lesbian Fund for Colorado, Colorado Springs Diversity Forum, Pikes Peak Library District, Colorado College, and others.
Says Suarez, “There were hundreds of entries in each region, and 10 to 12 finalists for each market. It was hard to pick a winner, as each had a different approach to diversity, and the professional quality of the writing and illustration in all the entries was consistently high.”
Some of the young authors were accomplished in other fields as well; one winning author had also written an opera.
“Booz Allen is getting in on the ground floor of support to these future leaders and others like them,” says Zakheim. “This project goes to the heart of Booz Allen’s core values, and enhances diversity on a nationwide scale. We cannot overstate the value of this type of effort—not just the value in getting involved, but also in making a positive contribution and enhancing our communities.”
B’nai B’rith recognized Dr. Shrader in 2007 for his commitment to philanthropic leadership and diversity education with its Distinguished Achievement Award. Past recipients of the award include former Presidents Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush.
In a nomination letter to Dr. Shrader, former B’nai B’rith president Joel Kaplan said that the esteemed award was particularly meaningful: “We want to highlight the importance of diversity in our community. We share you and your company’s values in recognizing the need for tolerance and combating prejudice.”
B’nai B’rith International is the oldest Jewish humanitarian, human rights, and advocacy organization, which has worked for unity, security, continuity, and tolerance since 1843.
story posted July 23, 2008
