{"id":463,"date":"2021-10-06T16:52:17","date_gmt":"2021-10-06T16:52:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/essay-contest\/essay-contest-requirements\/"},"modified":"2026-03-16T15:57:56","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T19:57:56","slug":"essay-contest-requirements","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/essay-contest\/essay-contest-requirements\/","title":{"rendered":"Contest Requirements"},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"wysiwyg wysiwyg-primary-block alignfull\" >\n\t<div class=\"container grid-default wysiwyg__container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<nav class=\"sidebar-menu \" aria-label=\"Site Menu\" id=\"page-nav\">\n\t\t<div class=\"sidebar-menu__wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<header class=\"sidebar-menu__header\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"sidebar-menu__headerLabel\">College of Liberal Arts &#038; Sciences Menu<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button class=\"sidebar-menu__mobileToggle\" title=\"Toggle Menu\" :aria-expanded=\"mobileOpen\"><\/button>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/header>\n\n\t\t\t<ul class=\"sidebar-menu__list\" v-show=\"mobileOpen\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem initial-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/about\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >About<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem initial-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/undergraduate-programs\/\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >Undergraduate Programs<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem initial-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/las-graduate-programs\/\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >Graduate Programs<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem initial-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/academics\/three-year-programs\/\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >Three-Year Programs<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem initial-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/faculty-staff\/\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >Faculty &#038; Staff<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem initial-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/experiential-learning\/\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >Experiential Learning<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem initial-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/global-opportunities\/\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >Global Opportunities<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem initial-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\/arts-sciences\/essay-contest\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >Liberal Arts Essay Contest<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem hide-overflow\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/sciences-complex\/\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >Sciences Complex<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem hide-overflow\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/academics\/phi-beta-kappa\/\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >Phi Beta Kappa Society<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem hide-overflow\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/student-awards\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >LAS Student Awards<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sidebar-menu__listItem hide-overflow\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/sci-olympiad\/\" class=\"sidebar-menu__listLink\" >Science Olympiad<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<button class=\"sidebar-menu__desktopToggle\" v-text=\"desktopLabel\" :aria-expanded=\"desktopOpen\">More Links<\/button>\n\t\t\t<\/nav>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wysiwyg__wrapper wysiwyg__wrapper--hasSidebar\">\n\t\t\t<!-- content from editor -->\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wysiwyg__content wysiwyg__contentContainer\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"acf-innerblocks-container\">\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-contest-requirements\">Contest Requirements<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p>The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences invites you to participate in our annual liberal arts education essay contest during the academic year 2025-2026. The contest is open to all currently enrolled Butler undergraduates who have completed two or more semesters at Butler or another post-secondary liberal arts institution, and the student who writes the winning essay will win a $1000 prize. Past essay contest winners are not permitted to enter the contest. The winning essay will be posted on the Liberal Arts and Sciences website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The submitted essays will be judged by a committee of Butler University faculty drawn from various disciplines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-prompt-for-this-year-s-essay-is-does-reading-matter\">The prompt for this year&#8217;s essay is: Does Reading Matter?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>The evidence, statistical and anecdotal, is piling up: in an age of social media and other digital distractions, people are becoming less and less inclined to immerse themselves in a book. One recent study indicates that, over the past two decades, daily reading for pleasure among Americans has dropped forty percent. Middle school and high school teachers are asking their students to read fewer and fewer full-length books. Data released last year by the federal Department of Education indicate that the reading skills of high school seniors in the United States are the worst they have been in three decades. Does reading books even matter? Why or why not? How is your answer reflected in the place of reading in your own life?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-contest-requirements-0\">Contest Requirements<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Limit yourself to 1,000 words and submit your essay as an attachment by April 6, 2026 to <a aria-label=\"To make this website accessible to screen reader, Press combination of alt and 1 keys. To stop getting this message, press the combination of alt and 2 keys\" href=\"mailto:las@butler.edu\">las@butler.edu<\/a>. Essays over 1,000 words will not be considered.\u00a0The format of your paper should conform to the following standards:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Single spaced<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>One-inch margins<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Twelve point font<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Conventional book-print fonts, such as Times, New Times Roman, Lucinda Bright, etc. No novelty fonts.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Give your essay a title (no more than one line please)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Title your attachment Lastname_FirstNameLAScontest.doc.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Make sure that your email includes contact information (name, address, phone number, email address). Do not include your name or contact information within the file, as these essays will be blind-reviewed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Your submission will almost certainly be richer if you avail yourself of the resources and commentaries posted at the LAS Faculty Perspectives webpage linked below. You are not expected necessarily to agree with these commentaries or to quote from them, but reading them will certainly help deepen and vary your thinking about the topic. Please note that by submitting an entry, you are giving us permission to post your essay on the Liberal Arts and Sciences website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"link-list layout-links\" >\n    <div class=\"link-list__container link-list__grid-default\">\n                        <div class=\"list-list__linkWrapper link-list__grid-default\">\n                                <ul class=\"wysiwyg__ctaLinks\">\n                                                        <li>\n                                    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/faculty-perspectives\/\" class=\"button-link-right button-link-right--color-blue-bright\" >LAS Faculty Perspectives<\/a>\n                                <\/li>\n                                                        <li>\n                                    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/essay-contest\/essay-contest-winners\/\" class=\"button-link-right button-link-right--color-blue-bright\" >Read previous years&#8217; prompts and winning essays.<\/a>\n                                <\/li>\n                                            <\/ul>\n                                \n                    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"parent":372,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-463","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"revision_note":"","acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.2 (Yoast SEO v26.4) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Contest Requirements | Butler University<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/essay-contest\/essay-contest-requirements\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Contest Requirements | Butler University\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.butler.edu\/arts-sciences\/essay-contest\/essay-contest-requirements\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"College of Liberal Arts &amp; 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