Student Writing Competition in ADR

Recognizing scholarly work in Undergraduate, Graduate and Legal degree programs.

“Mainstreaming Creative Conflict Resolution”

The Association for Conflict Resolution Greater New York Chapter, Inc. (ACR-GNY) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting and strengthening alternative dispute and conflict resolution, fostering the use of dialogue and contributing to professional development of the ADR field. It is a regional chapter of The Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR), the preeminent national not-for-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the practice and public understanding of peaceful, effective conflict resolution.

Each year, the ACR-GNY hosts its Annual Conference in New York City, a full-day event of presentations, trainings and workshops led by distinguished practitioners and scholars in the field of conflict resolution. 

This year’s conference, being held on June 20, 2013 at Cardozo School of Law, will be focused on Mainstreaming Creative Conflict Resolution. In an effort to promote and educate the community about peaceful conflict resolution and collaborative decision making at all levels of society, ACR-GNY is inviting students in the Greater New York area to submit written work on this topic.

Papers will be considered in one of three categories based upon the degree program of the author (Undergraduate, Graduate or Law) and a first place winner from each category will be recognized.

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Click here to see the competition results and read the best essays.

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Prizes for 1st place papers:          $250.00
Free admission to the conference for the author
An invitation for the author to present the paper at the conference
Publication of the paper on the ACR-GNY website
One year membership to ACR-GNY

Additional papers may also be selected for recognition.

Please review the Competition Guidelines for submission and eligibility requirements.

Please direct any inquiries to Glen Parker at writing_competition@acrgny.org.

COMPETITION GUIDELINES

Purpose

The purpose of the competition is to create greater interest in the field of conflict resolution among students throughout the Greater New York area* and to enrich the ADR community with the energy and talent of those doing scholarly research at various academic levels.

Topic

The topic of this year’s competition is “Mainstreaming Creative Conflict Resolution.” Papers should meaningfully address the question of broadening the reach and practice of ADR, but this needn’t be the sole focal point of the paper.

Format/Length

Essays are limited to 10-20 typewritten pages, including footnotes or endnotes. The text of the essay must be double-spaced, with twelve-point font and one-inch margins.

Categories/Eligibility

The ACR-GNY Writing Competition is open to all students of higher education attending school in the Greater New York region during the Spring of 2013. Contestants shall be considered in one of the following categories:

Undergraduate -- For contestants who are currently matriculated and working towards an Associates or Bachelors degree.

Graduate -- For contestants who are currently enrolled in a non-legal Masters or Doctorate degree. Program.

Law -- For contestants who are currently enrolled in law school.

To be eligible for the competition students must either (1) be enrolled in a school in Connecticut, New Jersey, New York or Pennsylvania, or (2) have a permanent residence in Connecticut, New Jersey, New York or Pennsylvania.

Prizes

A first place prize may be awarded for the best paper within each category. Each first place prize winner shall receive $250, free admission to the 2013 ACR-GNY Annual Conference, an invitation to present their paper at the 2013 ACR-GNY Annual Conference, and a one year membership to ACR-GNY. Additionally, winning papers will be posted on the ACR-GNY website.

Additional entries may also be recognized for Honorable Mention. Authors of papers selected for Honorable Mention will receive free admission to the 2013 ACR-GNY Annual Conference and a one year membership to ACR-GNY. Additionally, papers selected for Honorable Mention will be posted on the ACR-GNY website.

Authorship

Each entry must contain only the uncollaborated original work of a single individual and the ideas and work reflected by each entry must be the author’s own. All entries will be reviewed for plagiarism.

No paper that has been previously published in any form will be considered. Papers written for scholarly classes are permitted as long as they have not been published.

Judging

Entries will be judged based on the following criteria:

The entries will be judged anonymously by selected members of the ACR-GNY. The ACR-GNY Writing Competition Committee will notify the winner(s) of their selection. The ACR-GNY reserves the right not to award any prizes if it is determined that no entries are of sufficient quality to merit selection that year.

Entry Information and Procedures

The entry should be submitted to the ACR-GNY Writing Competition Committee (writing_competition@acrgny.org) in PDF format. Additionally, the following information MUST accompany each submission:

Student's Name

School

Expected Graduation date

Faculty Advisor(s)

Permanent Street Address

Email Address

Phone number

The contestant’s name and other identifying markings such as school name are not to be on any copy of the submitted entry. Neither the contestant’s identity nor his/her academic institution will be known to the ACR-GNY members doing the judging.

Each entrant may submit only one essay in the ACR-GNY Writing Competition in 2013.

Entry Deadline

Entries for the competition must be submitted by Sunday, May 12, 2013.