Lutheran Church History Contest for Youth

LUTHERAN CHURCH HISTORY CONTEST

FOR MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL YOUTH

 2012 CONTEST RULES

The Lutheran Church History Contest for Middle and High School youth is sponsored by the Lutheran Historical Society of the Mid-Atlantic (LHSMA).  The contest period begins on September 1, 2011 and concludes on March 1, 2012

How to Enter:  Contestants will create a multimedia presentation, e.g., a DVD or a Power Point presentation, and an accompanying typewritten script.  They should submit the following to the Lutheran Historical Society of the Mid-Atlantic, 61 Seminary Ridge, Gettysburg, PA  17325 postmarked no later than March 1, 2012:

1. A completed application form
2. A copy of the completed DVD or Power Point project.  Please note: if you are submitting a DVD, please provide two copies.  A Power Point project should be placed on a CD-Rom or flash drive and submitted
3. An electronic copy of the typewritten script.

 As part of the project contestants must include a bibliography of resources including information about people who were interviewed.  In addition to the project, they should complete the application form and have their pastor or youth advisor sign the form.  The society also requests that each contestant submit a copy of the project for the congregation’s archives.  

 Who can enter?  Middle School (grades 6-8) and High School (grades 9-12) students who participate in a Lutheran congregation.

 Can more than one person work on a project?  Each project can be the work of one or two persons.  While other people may be consulted, the primary work of the project should be completed by a single individual or a team of two individuals at most.

 How Long Should the Project be?:   The length of the project should be 15-20 minutes.  The typewritten script should be in the Times New Roman font size 12. 

 Topic:  My Congregation’s Story.   Contestants will develop a general history of a congregation.  OR  Christian Biography  Contestants will develop a biographical history of a person in their congregation’s history (i.e. a missionary, a pastor, a rostered leader, a musician, a lay leader etc.)

Some Suggestions on how to approach these topics:  Below are listed some guidelines to help direct contestants’ research and presentations. These are not requirements but rather aides to contestants as they seek to develop their projects.

If selecting My Congregation’s Story theme

Tell about the origins of your congregation: when, where, and why was it founded; who were the leaders; was there a pastor in place when the church was first established?  

• Articulate the congregation’s mission and explain its importance in parish ministry. 
• Name significant leaders in the history of the congregation, e.g., lay leaders, pastors, council presidents, and explain their importance in the congregation’s history.
• Indicate significant events or decisions in the history of your congregation and the effects they have had on your story, e.g., language use, relocation, the historical decision to call a pastor, calling or hiring of other staff such as an organist/music minister or youth worker, a tragedy such as a fire, building projects, the addition of technology.
• How has your congregation served your community?
• Tell what is most important in this congregation for you.

 If selecting the Christian Biography theme

 Identify the person you are studying.

• Tell why he or she is an important part of your congregation’s story.
• What contributions to the congregation’s life and ministry did this person make?
• How was this person a role model for other people?
• What distinctive traits and gifts did this person bring to the congregation?
• What programs, events, activities was this person involved in both inside and outside the church?

Judging:  The board of directors of the Lutheran Historical Society of Mid-Atlantic will appoint a panel of judges to review the projects and determine winners.

 Projects will be judged in the following categories:

1.Coherence of presentation (i.e., Is the narrative well organized? Does it tell the story

   effectively?  Does it have a clearly articulated beginning and ending?)

2. Number and diversity of resources consulted (i.e., Has the contestant used archival

    Material (found in the congregation’s archives or at the ELCA Region 8 archives, or a      

     local historical society, etc), oral history interviews, previous congregational histories,   

     congregational documents, etc?)

3. Creativity of presentation (i.e. Is the style of the submission engaging?)

 Prizes   First, second and third place prizes will be awarded in each age group. A certain minimum level of excellence determined by a panel of judges must be demonstrated to win a prize.   Prizes are:  $125-First Prize, $75-Second Prize, $50-Third Prize.  First prize recipients will be invited to the Tuesday, April 17, 2012 LHSMA Spring Program to be held at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The first prize recipients in each age group will present their projects as part of the society’s annual Spring program.  Winners will be notified on or about April 1, 2012.

 Questions: Questions can be directed to Pastor Stephen Herr, president of the Lutheran Historical Society of the Mid-Atlantic at pastor@christgettysburg.org or 717-334-5212.

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LUTHERAN CHURCH HISTORY CONTEST
FOR MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL YOUTH

APPLICATION FORM

Contestant’s name______________________________________________________

Contestant’s address____________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________

Contestant’s phone number_____________________________________________________

Contestant’s email address____________________________________________________

Congregation________________________________________________

Congregation address____________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________

Congregation’s email address____________________________________________________

Congregation’s Phone Number_____________________________________________________

Pastor______________________________________________________

Youth Minister or Advistor____________________________________________________

Synod______________________________________________________

Please have your pastor or youth advisor sign below to indicate that she or he has been consulted In the preparation of this project.

_________________________________________________________
Please print

________________________________
Signature

Contestants are asked to submit a copy of their project to their congregation for its archives. Please check below to indicate that this has been done. Thank you.

________ I have given a copy of my project to the congregation for its archives.

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