AAUW Ohio is sponsoring an essay contest modeled after NPR’s “This I Believe.” Winning entries will earn money for branches — and be featured at our 86th Annual Convention, held April 17-18 in Worthington.

Details are below. Check them out and get ready to write. The deadline for entries is April 2.

This I Believe Essay-Writing Guidelines

Tell us what you believe about AAUW! Your essay, if chosen, will bring financial reward to your branch.

Using “This I Believe” guidelines found at the National Public Radio Web site, we are setting up our own essay contest this year as part of Convention programming. Award winning submissions will be read throughout the two-day Convention, April 17-18, 2010.

We invite you to contribute to this project by writing and submitting your own statement of personal belief about AAUW and its value. We understand how difficult this can be, but encourage you to express yourself on this topic to enlighten us, energize us and expand our thinking when we most need it.

Some suggestions:

Tell a story: Be specific. Take your thinking about AAUW out of some nether world and ground it in the events of your life. Consider moments when equity and fairness became important to you. Think of your own experience, work and family; think about barriers. Your story need not be heart-warming or gut-wrenching—it can even be funny—but it should be real. Make sure your story ties to the essence of your AAUW philosophy and the shaping of your feelings about the organization.

Be brief: Your statement should be between 350 and 500 words. That’s about three minutes when read aloud at your natural pace.

Name your belief: If you can’t name why you value AAUW in a sentence or two, your essay might not be about belief. Also, rather than writing a list, consider focusing on one AAUW core value that particularly resonates with you because three minutes is a very short time.

Be positive: Please avoid preaching or editorializing. Tell us what you do believe about AAUW, not what you don’t believe. Avoid speaking in the editorial “we.” Make your essay about you; speak in the first person.

Be personal: Write in words and phrases that are comfortable for you to speak. We recommend you read your essay aloud to yourself several times, and each time edit it and simplify it until you find the words, tone and story that truly echo your belief and the way you speak.

Up to four essays will be selected for Convention. Those who submit winning statements will receive a $25 credit to their branch’s total EF/LAF giving for 2010. Submissions should be emailed to dregan@bgsu.edu OR sent by regular mail to Diane Regan, President, AAUW Ohio, 873 Country Club Dr., Bowling Green, OH 43402 by April 2.