The Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District (the District) held a ceremony at the Georgia State Capitol on Tuesday, Dec. 17 to celebrate the winners of its 23^rd annual middle school essay contest. Julianne Roberts of Lanier Christian Academy in Gainesville, GA was recognized as the District-wide winner, along with winners from 14 other counties and the City of Atlanta. District leaders joined the students, parents and educators to recognize the students’ achievements.

More than 800 students from across the 15-county region participated in this year’s contest. Students were challenged to write a 300-500 word essay about local river basins throughout the District. Roberts received a $500 prize for her winning essay comparing and contrasting the careers of a water process engineer and water quality superintendent. “Have you ever wondered how you manage to have [water] so conveniently when others have to walk miles? Well, there are people working daily to make sure you can fulfill your basic needs requiring water,” Roberts wrote in her essay.

Reid Bond, a 6^th grade student at Durham Middle School in Cobb County, was named the District-wide runner-up for his essay, which noted “Helping spread the word about protecting our environment from dangerous runoff is the most important thing I can do if I want to protect the water system and continue to enjoy fishing.”

For over two decades, the District has hosted the annual essay contest as an education and outreach activity to challenge thousands of middle school students to think critically about the conservation and protection of water resources in the region.

“Water conservation and preservation awareness is spreading throughout the District, as evidenced by one of the largest responses to our Middle School Essay Contest we have seen in years,” said Danny Johnson, District Director. “The knowledge and efforts of this generation will continue to grow the commitment to preserving and protecting our local water resources for generations to come.”

2024 Essay Contest Winners

• District-wide winner: Julianne Roberts of Lanier Christian Academy, Hall County

• District Runner-up: Reid Bond, Durham Middle School, Cobb County

• Elliot Tran – Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School, City of Atlanta

• Oliver Kuykendall – Woodland Middle School, Bartow County

• Arcadian Freund – E.T. Booth Middle School, Cherokee County

• Alexis Moore – Mundy’s Mill Middle School, Clayton County

• Aasiya Momin – The Carolyn Barron Montessori School, Coweta County

• Vikrant Ravi – Chamblee Middle School, DeKalb County

• Myles Martin – Harvester Christian Academy, Douglas County

• Callie You – J.C. Booth Middle School, Fayette County

• Sonakshi Prusti – Piney Grove Middle School, Forsyth County

• Kyla Onwumbiko – Sandtown Middle School, Fulton County

• Elliam Rodriguez – Berkmar Middle School, Gwinnett County

• Rennajah Leverette – Impact Academy, Henry County

• Rylen Weeks – Austin Middle School, Paulding County

• Ava Smith – Memorial Middle School, Rockdale County

The annual essay contest is one of many District initiatives to raise awareness about conservation efforts and the importance of water quality preservation in the metro Atlanta region. Visit My Drop Counts for information, resources and educational activities about the region’s water supplies and planning, and take our Virtual Learning Journey with GPB-TV.