Kirkwood High School Students Recognized in 2025 NCTE Achievement Awards in Writing

Six students from Kirkwood High School have been honored in the 2025 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Achievement Awards in Writing, a national program that recognizes excellence in student writing.

The following students received commendations:

• Delaney Ruyle – First Class rating (the highest possible)
• Sarah Hainline – First Class rating (the highest possible)
• Moth Bricker – First Class rating (the highest possible)
• Christian Ermilio – Superior rating
• Kylie Huang – Superior rating
• Emily Evans – Excellent rating

The NCTE Achievement Awards in Writing is a school-based writing program established in 1957 to encourage high school students to write and to honor some of the most accomplished student writers in the nation. Participation is limited to students in their junior year.

As part of the contest, students respond to a writing prompt with an original essay. This year’s prompt was:
“There will always be storms of one kind or another, but I will always be buoyed by books—hopeful, encompassing, life-saving books.”

In 2025, 633 students were nominated by schools across 44 states, as well as Guam, Washington, D.C., and internationally from Canada, Greece, Jordan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. Submissions were judged holistically by two to three independent evaluators based on content, purpose, audience, tone, word choice, organization, development, and style.

For more information about the NCTE Achievement Awards in Writing, including a list of past winners, visit www.ncte.org/awards/achievement-awards-in-writing.

The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) is the nation’s most comprehensive literacy organization, serving over 25,000 educators across the preK–college spectrum. Since 1911, NCTE has played a leading role in advancing the teaching and learning of English and the language arts. Learn more at www.ncte.org.