University of Minnesota Athletics
Athletes Host Native American Essay Contest
11/22/2010 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
Forty-eight Gopher athletes joined 300 kids from three elementary schools at the Sports Pavilion on Nov. 10 from 9:45 a.m. to 2 p.m., leading them in a variety of activities as part of the Native American Heritage Month and "Celebrating Our Rich Native American Heritage" by hosting the annual essay contest. Each athlete spent at least an hour at the event, helping to escort kids around the Pavilion, acting as panel members for a question-and-answer session, passing out t-shirts and goodie bags, and monitoring the kids' lunch hour.
The day began as the volunteers led the kids in a number of breakout sessions, including a tour of the men's and women's basketball locker rooms and a "College is Cool" activity. The day's main event, the recognition ceremony, presented students with the runner-up and first-place awards for the Essay Contest. The winners will be recognized at the North Dakota State men's basketball game at Williams Arena on Nov. 24. All six winners and runner-ups received refurbished laptops, donated by the U of M Office for Business & Community Economic Development and Jostens, Inc. They also received several other prizes, including an autographed women's basketball poster and a Maroon and Gold Football Book.
The three attending schools -- Expo Elementary, American Indian Magnet, and Lyndale Community School -- were each invited to return to Williams Arena to watch the women's basketball team defeat Milwaukee 76-53 on Nov. 20. There, the winners and runner-ups of the essay contest were recognized for their efforts.
The essay contest is part of Native American Heritage Month, and is held annually at the University of Minnesota. This year, students from the three elementary schools wrote about Marcie Rendon, Maude Kegg, John Harrington, and "Famous Dave" Anderson, who gave an introduction speech at the contest event.
Notable Gophers at the event include DeLeon Eskridge (football), Brandon Kirksey (football), Colton Iverson (men's basketball), Al Nolen (men's basketball), Brianna Mastey (women's basketball), and Amanda Kessel (women's hockey).
Winners
Lyndale Community - Ashley James
Expo Elementary School – Isabelle Natrop
American Indian Magnet School – Cierra Bulau
Runner-Ups
American Indian Magnet School – Sandy Yang
Expo Elementary School – Michaela McGough
Lyndale Community School – Manaal Dahir
