2026 MLK Essay
Essay Prompt: How can kindness and fairness help make the world better, and how can you help keep that change alive?
K-Grade 12 Guidelines
Length and style:
K-2 – May be submitted in words or pictures
Grades 3-5 – An essay between 150-200 words
Grades 6-8 – An essay between 250-350 words
Grades 9-12 – An essay not to exceed 500 words
Format:
Download Entry Form
The essay may be handwritten or produced on a computer in 12 pt font
Submitting The Essays:
Individual essays should be accompanied by a separate but completed entry form, copy attached. If submissions are coming from a class in school, we ask that teachers number each essay from the class and include entry forms with numbers which match the essays in a separate folder or envelope.
Copyright:
All essays become the property of MTFD which reserves the right to publish all essays.
Prizes:
A cash prize of $200 will be awarded to the winner in each age group. K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12
Winners and at least one adult family member must attend the Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast at Walters State Community College Library at 10:00am on January 19, 2025, to present his or her essay.
Deadline for Entries is January 9, 2026
Submit to Morristown Task Force on Diversity, PO Box 3062, Morristown, TN 37815
Essays with entry form information can be E-mailed to: morristowndiversitytaskforce@gmail.com