O’Hara Elementary School fifth-grader Sidera Kingman-Graves won second place in this year’s Rule of Law Essay Contest.

The contest was open to fifth- and sixth-graders from Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the U.S. Virgin Island schools, and focused on civics, citizenship, and the concept of the “Rule of Law.”

The essay prompt was “What does the Rule of Law mean to you and to our country?”

Entries were evaluated based on focus, content development, organization, and style.

As a winner, Sidera was invited to attend a program at the Federal Courthouse in Pittsburgh May 16, where she met Chief United States District Judge Mark Hornak, toured the courthouse, and had the opportunity to read her essay.

The contest was sponsored by the courts, community, and Rule of Law Committee of the Judicial Council of the Third Circuit.

The Third Judicial Circuit comprises the U.S. Court of Appeals as well as the federal district courts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

U.S. District Judge Cathy Bissoon, chair of the community outreach committee, coordinated this year’s contest.

Fourteen fifth-grade students in O’Hara Elementary School teacher Marilyn Hall’s enriched English language arts class submitted essays for the contest.

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