Arren Delatorre, a junior at Robert E. Lee High School, has been selected as the winner of the Global Black History Essay Contest presented by the Duval County Public Schools' (DCPS) Department of World Languages.
“We want to expose students to the global contributions made by Black people around the world,” said Dr. Joanne Davis, supervisor of
world languages. “This is an effort to broaden the visions of young people in this area that so often focuses only on African-Americans.”
Arren's essay was about Dr. Mae Carol Jemison, the first African-American female astronaut. Although Arren wrote about an African-American, Dr. Davis said her essay clearly stood out as the best. Next year, Dr. Davis may require entrants to only write about non-Americans.
In honor of her achievement,
Arren was picked up at school in a luxury van driven by Gary Sass, owner of AdLib Luxury Tours, and transported to City Hall, where she was recognized by Mayor John Peyton.
After meeting the Mayor, Arren was treated to lunch at Maggiano's Little Italy at the St. Johns Town Center.
Arren was accompanied by her Spanish teacher, Charles McCoy, as well
as Philip Little, Coordinator of American History, and also a judge for the contest.
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