The Marian Essay Contest was established to provide students with the opportunity to deeper their devotion to the Blessed Mother and better understand their own role as disciples and stewards of God’s grace. The author of the winning essay will receive a $1,000 scholarship award which can be used for Catholic school tuition, domestic mission trips, San Pedro retreats and/or to donate to the diocesan parish, school or ministry of their choice! An award will also be given to the top 7/8th grade essay and 5/6th grade essay as chosen from the remaining entries.
Who can enter the contest?
Any incoming or outgoing middle school student enrolled in a Diocese of Orlando Catholic school, parish faith formation, religious education, youth ministry or other catechetical formation program during the 2022-23 academic year.
Requirements
- A 2-page (max) essay formatted: Times New Roman, 12 point font, double spaced, standard margins.
- The Entry Form and Essay must be submitted to Mrs. Camous at rcamous@cfocf.org by 5:00 PM on Thursday, April 20, 2023.
Download
Marian Essay Contest Entry Form
Reflect on the theme:
It was through Mary that Jesus came into the world; how can we imitate Mary and bring Christ to others?
Marian Essay Contest entries go through 3 stages of reviewing:
Preliminary: Does the entry meet the basic requirements and was it relatively free of major errors.
Review Committee: The Catholic Foundation engages a diverse group of panelists representing many perspectives of our faith family, including clergy, religious, and Catholic lay leaders to serve on the Marian Essay Contest Review Committee. Each entry is scored by two of our review committee members.
Finalist: The top two entries from each reviewing group are then ranked by the President & CEO and Vice President & CDSO of The Catholic Foundation to determine the winners and honorable mentions.
More information
The Marian Contest is administered through an Endowment Fund at The Catholic Foundation of Central Florida in conjunction with the Secretariat of Education and Secretariat of Laity, Family and Life.
If you have any questions, please contact Rosie Camous at (407) 246-7192 or rcamous@cfocf.org.
2022 Winners
Overall 1st Place: Tiary Larson Correa, St. Anthony Catholic School
Top 7th/8th Grade Entry: Sarah Zobel, Annunciation Catholic Academy
Top 5th/6th Grade Entry: Marie Isabela Gurley, St. Mary Magdalen Catholic School
Honorable Mentions:
- Aixa Anderson, St. Paul Catholic School
- Charlotte Arenth, Resurrection Catholic School
- Lauren Bennett, Annunciation Catholic Academy
- Ethan Dunn, St. Mary Magdalen Catholic School
- Andres Montenegro, Resurrection Catholic School
2021 Winners
1st Place: Samantha Lorey, St. Mary Magdalen Catholic School
2nd Place: Kaelyn Johnson, St. Charles Borromeo Catholic School
3rd Place: Aileen de la Rosa: St. John Vianney Parish
Honorable Mentions:
- Lila Allender, St. Mary Magdalen Catholic School
- Lucky Boren, St. Brendan Catholic School
- Santino Cevallos, St. Brendan Catholic School
- Andres Gomez, Ascension Catholic School
- Alexa Johnson, St. Charles Borromeo Catholic School