MLK essay contest now open
The 2026 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. essay contest is now open and sixth through 12th grade students are invited to participate.
Students are asked to write their essays based on a quotes from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
“There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right.”
The online submission deadline is Feb. 27. Up to five essays may be submitted by a single school. More specific contest information can be found on the Martin Luther King Jr. Essay Contest website or IASP.org.
The program is free for Department of Student Programs member schools. Non-member schools will be charged $10 per essay.
Department of Student Programs membership is independent of individual administrator membership through IASP. For questions, contact Jill Slinker at jslinker@iasp.org.
Students win poetry prizes
Four local students have won first place honors in an annual poetry contest sponsored by the Mudlarks Garden Club of Bartholomew County. Idhika Shetty, a 10th grader at Columbus North High School, Jiya Kothari and Hazel Kelly, grades 7 and 8 at Central Middle School, and Lucy Whittington, grade 3 at Rockcreek Elementary are this year’s local winners. Their poems have moved on to the state contest sponsored by the Garden Clubs of Indiana. All four students will be receiving participation medals and certificates. This year’s theme was “Plant America for the Next 100 Years.”
Students in grades K-12 interested in submitting poems for next year’s contest are invited to visit the National Garden Clubs, Inc. website at gardenclub.org/poetry-contest.
Students selected for fellowship
FRANKLIN — Franklin College has selected five students to serve as Pulliam Fellows during the 2025-26 academic year. The Pulliam Fellowship program was established in 1982 through the College’s Pulliam School of Journalism and serves as an experiential learning opportunity. The fellowship provides students with hands-on experience in feature writing, media relations, marketing, sports information and photography. The fellowship also puts students in contact with media professionals in various fields.
The following students have been selected for the Pulliam Fellowship:
- Anna Cecil, a senior multimedia journalism major, is from Indianapolis. Last semester she spent five months reporting on Indiana state politics for TheStatehouseFile.com (TSF). Currently, she is working on another TSF-related initiative called the Statehouse Reporting Project where she works with students covering politics in other states. Cecil is also a news editor for The Franklin, the College’s on-campus news site and magazine.
- Esther Etherington, a senior elementary education major with a nonprofit leadership minor, is from Richmond. After gaining experience as a two-year member of the women’s golf team at the college, working in the sports department as a Sports Information Pulliam Fellow is a natural fit. She also gained experience for the position by serving as a First Tee – Greater Charleston Pathfinder Immersion Program intern, a United States Golf Association Pathways intern and as the Richmond Site Director for First Tee – Indiana. On campus, Etherington is a member of Student Foundation, the Education Club and serves as an Admissions Ambassador, welcoming potential new students and their families to campus.
- Luke Shepherd, a sophomore sports communication major, is from Avon. Shepherd just completed a summer internship as a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College students. He is also a live commentator at Franklin College soccer, basketball and volleyball games and a member of a team of students who are working on a documentary about the Franklin College football team.
- Katie Thoman, a senior public relations and English major, is from Rushville. Thoman works in the Write Place as a tutor. She also serves on the executive board for Delta Delta Delta sorority and is a member of the women’s chorus.
- Chloe White, a junior multimedia journalism major with minors in graphic design and creative writing, is from Elizabethtown. White is currently the editor in chief of the Apogee, Franklin College’s student-powered literary publication, photography editor for The Franklin and the recipient of the Scott Alexander Journalism Scholarship. Last year, she ran The Statehouse File’s #GivetoGRIZ social media campaign.
Students honored at universities
Trine University President’s list
Columbus: Benjamin Blanz
Hope: Luke Bruner, Samuel Miller
Edinburgh: Brent Burton
Trine University Dean’s list
Edinburgh: Jazlynn Golder
North Vernon: Michele Hornback
Commiskey: Landen Young
Trine University, completed degrees
Columbus: Jayamuthu Kailash Karthikeyan
Southern New Hampshire University Dean’s list
Columbus: Jennifer Morse, Enrique Alejandro Vasquez, Jamey Scruggs, Casey Love, Elizabeth Glover
Utah Tech University
Columbus: Olivia Shoaf
The University of Wisconsin-Madison
Columbus: Max Nash
Indiana University Kokomo
Columbus: Davey Caldwell, Donald Gorbett, Aliea Mason
Nominations sought for Folger Award
Nominations are now being accepted for the 2026 Edna V. Folger Outstanding Teacher Award.
This annual award is designed to raise awareness about the immeasurable influence educators have on their students, and to recognize the image of educators as important community role models. SIHO Insurance Services, the Community Education Coalition, and the IU Columbus Center for Teaching and Learning sponsor the award.
Any full-time elementary or secondary school teacher or educator working in a public, private, or parochial school in Bartholomew County is eligible to receive the award. Classroom, special education, or specials teachers; certified educators; counselors; and administrators are all eligible.
Nomination instructions are available from the IU Columbus Center for Teaching and Learning, the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. administrative offices, and in the main office of schools throughout Bartholomew County. Nomination forms may also be downloaded at columbus.iu.edu/ctl/folger-award. Any individual or group may nominate a classroom teacher or educator to receive this award. Nominations should include biographical information, reasons for nomination, letters of recommendation and support materials.
The deadline for nominations is 4 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. The award will be announced at the 2026 Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting.
SIHO Insurance Services, the IU Columbus Center for Teaching and Learning, and the Community Education Coalition sponsor this award. For more information, contact Marsha VanNahmen at 812-375-7576 or mvannahm@iu.edu or visit columbus.iu.edu/ctl/folger-award.
