April is "National County Government Month" and the County Commissioners’ Association of West Virginia (CCAWV) is hosting our annual essay contest for 8th grade students across West Virginia.

There will be monetary prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Place Student Winners. There will also be a monetary prize for the 1st Place Winner’s Teacher to be used for classroom activities. The 1st Place Student and Teacher will each receive $500; 2nd Place Student $300; and 3rd Place Student $200. We will also award $50 for five Honorable Mention Students.

One of CCAWV’s goals is to increase information and public awareness about county government and the office of County Commissioner. As an initiative of this goal we are excited to partner with West Virginia educators to encourage students to learn and write about their local county governing body, the County Commission. (Teachers, for your convenience, we are attaching our brochure about county commission responsibilities.)

Student participants are asked to type a 500-word essay on the topic, "How does my county commission make life better for me?" All entries must be emailed by 5:00 pm Friday, April 16, 2021 to qualify. Please see rules attached. Entries should be emailed to: jennifer@ccawv.org or for more information please contact Jennifer Piercy at jennifer@ccawv.org or at 304-345-4639. Winners will be announced by April 23, 2021.

Want to know more?

Take a class fieldtrip to a county commission meeting! Ask your county commissioners to come speak to the class! Find out what your county commission is working on in your county and encourage your students to write about it from the perspective of an 8th grader and why it matters to them. There are also a series of five informational videos on our website at www.ccawv.org that details the roles and responsibilities of county commissioners.