Dalton, GA — Dalton Public Schools held its annual Young Georgia Authors celebration on Tuesday, March 25, at Hammond Creek Middle School. Students from across the district were recognized for their outstanding writing achievements during the event, which honored winners at the school, district, and Northwest Georgia RESA (Regional Educational Service Agency) levels.
The Young Georgia Authors (YGA) writing competition encourages students from kindergarten through 12th grade to develop their writing skills and express their creativity. School-level winners were recognized first, followed by district winners, and finally the Northwest Georgia RESA winners. Students who earned RESA honors will advance to the state-level competition, which will take place next month.
School-Level Winners
Kindergarten
Blue Ridge – Sergio Esteban – My Favorite Toy
Brookwood – Jaxon Mullis – Texas is Best
City Park – Thompson Kirkland – Helen Georgia
Park Creek – Lilian Ibanez Bautista – My Favorite Candy
Roan School – Kal-El Swinford – At Lego Land
Westwood – Camila Rodriguez – Cats
First Grade
Blue Ridge – Darcy Edwards – My Little Garden Girl: Epic Stories
Brookwood – Kehrysli Richardson – The Shooting Star
City Park – Imani Fields – Chick-Fil-A is the Best!
Park Creek – Camila Maldonado – A Gingerbread's Adventer
Roan School – Alexa Iraheta – I Love Art
Westwood – Henry Bledsoe – Dragon Wagon
Second Grade
Blue Ridge – Mia Garcia Hernandez – How to Behave in the Classroom
Brookwood – Vanessa Najera – Man on the Moon
City Park – Toccoa Lawson – My Funny Elf
Park Creek – Zayvian Mears – The Two Pro Ninga Stars
Roan School – Samuel Torres – Snakes
Westwood – Mason Haynes – The Most Insane Day
Third Grade
Blue Ridge – Camilla Perez – The New York Disaster
Brookwood – Bowen Thornton – The Rise and Fall of Love
City Park – Favio Caceres – The Titanic, A Sad Story
Park Creek – Emilio Martinez – When My Little Sister was Born
Roan School – Alliah Guzman – Titanic
Westwood – Marissa Hester – Back in Time to the Artic
Fourth Grade
Blue Ridge – Thiago Ramirez – Moving Day
Brookwood – Catherine Calfee – Hurricane Harper Hits the Coral Bay Shores
City Park – Zander Cruz – Beach, Baseball and the Unforgettable Vacation
Park Creek – Samuel Martinez-Gonzalez – Michael's Chance
Roan School – Evelyn Garcia – All About Narwhals
Westwood – Annie Bea Percy – Striking Out Epilepsy
Fifth Grade
Blue Ridge – Kimberly Adame – Love Beyond the Palace Walls
Brookwood – Belle Avilee – Every Day
City Park – Joseph Moore – Camping
Park Creek – Yaretzi Lopez – Big Boys Don't Cry
Roan School – Ayden Diaz – Guardians of the Wild
Westwood – Finley Souther – Stand Up!
Sixth Grade (Hammond Creek Middle)
Nayeli Perez Pelico – Country Research Paper
Ayo Ilesanmi – I Will Not Be The Last Butterfly
Evelyn Torres – Ocean Floor
Sofia Hernandez Lopez – Looking Forward
Connor Cloud – The Forgotten Pyramid
Briggs Bennett – Portal of the Unknown
Seventh Grade (Hammond Creek Middle)
Alleke Cortez – So Wanna Meet
Isabel Barrientos-Guijon – Pretty
Mary Pressley – I'm Fine
Valeria Castillo – Silver Eye
Addison Brown – Excerpt from "Hades and My War"
Landon Lewis – Joy to the World
Eighth Grade (Dalton Junior High)
Ives Quintero – A Severed Hilt and Blade
Salma El Mtouni – In the Frontline
Abbigail Lopez – A Second Chance
Melody Zamora – My American Dream
Nataly Velazquez – Capullos
Christian Verdel – Honey Bee
The Dalton Academy
9th Grade
Alexa Perez-Rios – Calls from Nature: Journey to Serenity
10th Grade
Jeiry Gonsales – Passive
Cheyanne Garcia – What Can I Say?
Sihara Soto – You Don't Know What You Have Until You Lose It
Elisa Ramirez – My Love (Poem)
Gabriela Mojica-Nava – Life Changing Before My Eyes
Arlahette Rios – Zombie Apocalypse
11th Grade
Diego Cuna – What is Understanding?
Fredy Reyneso – The Leaf of Life
Haley Marquez – Forgiving You
Lesley Morales – The Lightkeeper's Secret
Gabriela Ruelas – Perfectly Contradictory
Esmeralda Rios – First Gen.
12th Grade
Arely Hernandez – NHS Essay
Dalton High School
9th Grade
Noah Harden – A Trip to the Wasteland
Ian Gonzalez – Behind Space
Isaac Ceballos – Colorado
Anslie Wright – Drifting
Lillian Bowers – First Impressions
10th Grade
Sydney Brown – The Lazarus Effect
Isabel Perez – A Soft Landing
Natalia Villalobos – The Mystery of Growing Up
Mary Sharp – Puzzles
11th Grade
Shanya Washington – A Heartfelt Request
Annabelle Rollins – The Doll House
Karen Tercero – The Missing Key
Valeria Arleth Ferreira-Ponce – The Weight of Passing
Daenna J. Vasquez – A Letter to My Younger Self
Victoria Amaro – 1 in 150,000
12th Grade
Tasneem Issa – Into the Unknown
Cencen Isa Wan – Pizza on a Snowy Day
Elyanna Quintero – Lupe, Mago, Carmen, and Maria
Lilli Sharp – Kindergarten
Lily Bearden – My Favorite Color is Grey
Jose Ochoa – Memories of You
District-Level Winners
Kindergarten
Jaxon Mullis, Brookwood - Texas is Best
1st Grade
Camila Maldonado, Park Creek - A Gingerbread's Adventer
2nd Grade
Toccoa Lawson, City Park - My Funny Elf
3rd Grade
Bowen Thornton, Brookwood - The Rise and Fall of Love
4th Grade
Annie Bea Percy, Westwood - Striking Out Epilepsy
5th Grade
Finley Souther, Westwood - Stand Up!
6th Grade
Ayo Ilesanmi, Hammond Creek - I Will Not Be The Last Butterfly
7th Grade
Alleke Cortez, Hammond Creek - So Wanna Meet
8th Grade
Nataly Velazquez, Dalton Junior High - "Capullos"
9th Grade
Alexa Perez-Rios, The Dalton Academy - Calls from Nature: Journey to Serenity
10th Grade
Isabel Perez, Dalton High School - A Soft Landing
11th Grade
Annabelle Rollins, Dalton High School - The Doll House
12th Grade
Elyanna Quintero, Dalton High School - Lupe, Mago, Carmen, and Maria
Northwest Georgia RESA Winners
RESA Honorable Mention
Jaxon Mullis, Kindergarten, Brookwood - Texas is Best
RESA 1st Place Winner (Advances to State Level)
Annie Bea Percy, 4th Grade, Westwood - Striking Out Epilepsy
Dalton Public Schools is proud of all students who participated in this year’s Young Georgia Authors competition. Their hard work, creativity, and commitment to writing were on full display throughout the event. The district looks forward to cheering on our RESA winner as she represents Dalton Public Schools at the state level.