Kids Court Academy
This year was the fourth year of the Kids Court Academy! The Kids Court Academy (KCA) is a series of online workshops and experiences for middle and high school students to learn about civil rights and engage in deep discussions with their peers from around the state.
More information about the Kids Court Academy can be found here.
Kids Speak and Kids Court
Kids Speak
Prior to the pandemic, the CT Kids Court Essay Competition would kick off in May with Kids Speak, an event held at the University of Connecticut school of law. Kids Speak provided an opportunity for students to participate in group exercises, improvisations, debates, and to hear from a panel of experts on diversity issues, educational equity, anti-bullying, and school climate. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, Kids Speak will not take place in 2024. The Kids Court Competition will proceed without a kickoff.
Kids Court
Kids Court provides an opportunity for students to write a short essay on one of six civil rights topics. Students are not required to participate in Kids Speak in order to compete in the Kids Court Essay Competition. Students with the top essays from Middle School and the top essays from High School were selected as finalists to present their papers remotely before a panel of judges on June 5, 2024.
The 2024 Winners are:
High School Division
| 1st Place | Jessie Zheng, Amity Regional High School, Woodbridge, CT |
| 2nd Place | Suma Ganta, Farmington High School, Farmington, CT |
| 3rd Place |
Inam Khan, Wilby High School, Waterbury, CT |
| Finalist | Zeeva Haviland, Farmington High School, Farmington, CT |
| Finalist |
Mia Chen, Edwin O. Smith High School, Mansfield, CT |
Middle School Division
| 1st Place | Aurora Bresky, Jockey Hollow Middle School, Monroe, CT |
| 2nd Place | Astha Tripathy, Timothy Edwards Middle School, South Windsor, CT |
| 3rd Place | Phoebe Wu, Kelly STEAM Magnet Middle School, Norwich, CT |
| Finalist | Aakash Kumar, Irving A. Robbins Middle School, Farmington, CT |
| Finalist | Raaga Satyavarapu, Irving A. Robbins Middle School, Farmington, CT |
| Finalist | Mia Polis, Derby Middle School, Derby, CT |
The 2024 Finalists were:
High School Division
| Zheng, Jessie | Amity Regional High School, Woodbridge |
| Haviland, Zeeva | Farmington High School, Farmington |
| Khan, Inam | Wilby High School, Waterbury |
| Ganta, Suma | Farmington High School, Farmington |
| Chen, Mia | Edwin O. Smith High School, Mansfield |
Middle School Division
| Bresky, Aurora | Jockey Hollow Middle School, Monroe |
| Tripathy, Astha | Timothy Edwards Middle School, South Windsor |
| Satyavarapu, Raaga | Irving A. Robbins Middle School, Farmington |
| Kumar, Aakash | Irving A. Robbins Middle School, Farmington |
| Wu, Phoebe | Kelly STEAM Magnet Middle School, Norwich |
| Polis, Mia | Derby Middle School, Derby |
This year's topics were:
| Topic: | Description: |
| #RacialJusticeEmbraceEachOther | Fighting against discrimination in all forms. How do we achieve racial equality for all races and ethnicities? |
| #VotingRights | Who should have the right to vote and why? |
| #EducationAchievementGap | Why is there a disparity in academic achievement and what can we do about it? |
| #HousingWhereDoIFitIn | What can we do to address housing access for all people, including immigrants, undocumented and marginalized people? |
| #LGBTQ+AndYou | How can we protect the LGBTQ+ community in schools? |
| #OuchBullyingHurts | How can we safely handle bullying in schools or virtually? |
The scoring rubric for the essays can be found here.
More information about the Kids Court Competition and how to submit an entry can be found here.
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