MHS senior, 3 SSHS students win 9th Circuit Civics Contest for NMI District

U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona and Magistrate Judge Heather L. Kennedy pose for a group photo with five of the eight winners in the 2017 Ninth Circuit Civics Contest for the NMI District during the awarding ceremony in federal court on Monday afternoon. From left are Emma Timmons, Olivia Hirsh, Kennedy, Manglona, Guillermo Faller, Stephen Carino, and Jae Yeon Lee. (Ferdie de la Torre)

A senior from Marianas High School won the top place in the essay category of the 2017 Ninth Circuit Civics Contest for the U.S. District Court for the NMI, while three students from Saipan Southern High School won the contest’s video category.

Olivia Hirsh, 17, of MHS, grabbed the first place in the essay category.

Jae Yeon Lee, 18, Stephen Carino, 17, and Guillermo Faller, 17, all of SSHS, won first place in the video category.

Hirsh said she feels excited and happy “because all the hard work came to fruition.” Hirsh disclosed that it took her a month to complete her essay.

As a member of the MHS mock trial team, Hirsh heard about the contest from their group and saw the fliers.

Hirsh was adjudged best defense attorney along with a student from Grace Christian Academy during last year’s NMI High School Mock Trial.

In 2013, Hirsh and a fellow freshman at MHS topped the senior-level division of the Northern Marianas Humanities Council’s 10 Annual Valentine N. Sengebau Poetry Competition.

Lee, Carino, and Faller said they completed their video after eight hours at a restaurant.

In the essay category, Stephen Carino of SSHS grabbed second place; Giu Hur of Saipan International School won third place, Emma Timmons of MHS got fourth place, and Jacqueline Doctor of Mt. Carmel School received fifth place.

The pieces of top three winners in both categories will compete in the Circuit-wide contest.

U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona, Magistrate Judge Heather L. Kennedy, and District Court law clerk Richard Miller awarded the prizes during the announcement of the winners on Monday afternoon.

The first place winners in the essay and video categories each received $100 and certificates. The second place prize was $75 and a certificate, third place was $50 and a certificate, fourth place was $30 and certificate, and fifth place was $20 and a certificate.

A total of 30 students joined the essay contest, while one submitted in the video category. Seven high schools in the CNMI participated in the contest.

Manglona said the cash prizes for the Circuit-wide essay and video contest winners are $2,000 for first place, $1,000 for second place, and $500 for third place. This year’s topic is to consider and describe the relevance of the Japanese internment today as the nation combats terrorism.

The top three finishers in the essay and video competitions at the district level will go on to compete in the Ninth Circuit-wide contest.

The contest is open to high school students and home-schooled students of equivalent grade status.

The contest is organized by the Ninth Circuit Courts and Community Committee and cosponsored by the federal courts within the Ninth Circuit. Circuit contest winners will be announced in June.

Last year, Terrence Blanca of SSHS won the top prize in the essay category at the NMI District level.