25-26 Contest: Essays are due by February 20, 2026
Essay submissions are judged on content/originality, organization, use of resource materials, and writing. Connecticut Bar Foundation and the James W. Cooper Fellows do not represent or endorse the accuracy or the reliability of any of the information, content, sources, or statements contained in any student essay contest entry in Connecticut Bar Foundation James W. Cooper Fellows Quintin Johnstone Statewide High School Essay Contest.
General Submission Guidelines:
- Essays are to be submitted by a sponsoring teacher or counselor from the school where the student is enrolled.
*For homeschooled students not enrolled in a public or private school, a parent should sponsor the student.
- Each teacher shall submit no more than three student entries per class.
(i.e., if a teacher teaches two classes/sections, that teacher may submit up to three entries from each class/section, for a total of six).
- A school counselor may submit no more than three student entries.
- There is no limit to the number of teachers or counselors who may submit entries from one school.
- All fields in the Online Submission Form below must be completed for each essay submitted, along with two documents (Student & Parent Release Form AND the Student Essay).
1. Student & Parent Release Form
- This form must be submitted for the essay to qualify for the contest.
- Before attaching, please rename the file using the student's Last Name followed by First and Middle Initials in the following format:
*For John C. Smith the file would be named "SmithJC-EssayRelease.pdf" - Download the Student & Parent Release Form (This form is a fillable PDF that must be downloaded and opened in Adobe Acrobat if you wish to sign electronically. If you choose to complete it by hand, please be sure that all information is legible).
2. Student Essay
- Before attaching, please rename the file using the student's Last Name followed by First and Middle Initials in the following format:
For student John C. Smith the file would be named "SmithJC-Essay.pdf" - NO identifying information should be included within the essay itself (i.e. no teacher name, student name, school name, etc.).
- The essay may be submitted in any of the following file formats: .pdf .docx .doc.
Please click here for a complete list of contest rules, and be sure to read them carefully. Students should be mindful of the contest topic, and should review the full fact pattern; as noted in the rules, essays not responsive to the topic will be disqualified. If you have any questions, please email ctbf@ctbarfdn.org.
