For Immediate Release
October 21, 2021
Students will compete for the top prize at the AMLE21 conference in November.
Columbus, OH –
The Association for Middle Level Education (AMLE) announced today the semi-finalists in its inaugural Great Middle School Student Voice Off Contest, an international competition in which kids aged 10-15 make persuasive arguments for and against important issues impacting their daily lives as students, in this instance the use of homework and dress codes in middle school. Hundreds of passionate students from around the world participated by submitting video arguments in the category of their choosing. Each semi-finalist was selected as the top argument in their respective category:
Madison Lane, Grade 8
Byron Middle School
Byron, IL
Category: Against homework in middle school
Riley Sipe, Grade 6
Sutton Middle School
Atlanta, GA
Category: For homework in middle school
Katie Chung, Grade 7
Partnership Middle School
Starkville, MS
Category: For dress codes in middle school
Megha Shankri, Grade 8
Branchburg Central Middle School
Branchburg, NJ
Category: Against dress codes in middle school
Their winning video submissions can be viewed on the #AMLE21 conference website. The semi-finalists advance to compete for a berth in the final round on Thursday, November 4, at the opening session of AMLE21, the 48th annual conference for middle level education. The final round will take place on Sunday, November 7th and serve as the closing session for the conference.
The Great Middle School Student Voice Off Contest is designed to emphasize and raise awareness of the importance of engaging students as active participants in their own schooling. In its landmark position paper on best practice in the middle grades, The Successful Middle School: This We Believe, AMLE articulates that middle grades students benefit from democratic approaches to education that involve students regularly in shared decision making.
“Congratulations to these phenomenal students,” said Jim Barnes, Chair of the AMLE Board of Trustees. “You have been selected from among hundreds of your peers to represent middle school students on two important issues: homework and dress codes. I am confident you will do them proud.”
“We enjoyed hearing the passionate voices and diverse perspectives of so many students,” added Stephanie Simpson, CEO of AMLE, “Everything we do as an Association is made better when we meaningfully involve students, and we are delighted for Madison, Riley, Megha, and Katie to be a part of our AMLE21 annual conference. It was intentional that the final rounds occur during that event, so that these students can be a part of our members’ professional learning.”
In addition to the semi-finalists, AMLE also recognized five students as honorable mentions:
Dennis Vogel, Grade 8
Upper Moreland Middle School
Hatboro, PA
Category: Against homework in middle school
Josephine O’Connor, Grade 8
Upper Moreland Middle School
Hatboro, PA
Category: Against homework in middle school
Chloe Park, Grade 8
Korea International School, Jeju Campus
Seogwipo, South Korea
Category: Against dress codes in middle school
Gabriella Irani Fey, Grade 8
American School of Paris
Saint Cloud, France
Category: Against dress codes in middle school
Julia Polit, Grade 6
St. Charles Middle School
Bloomington, IN
Category: For homework in middle school
The Great Middle School Student Voice Off Contest is made possible through the sponsorship of Lead4Change. Learn more about the Lead4Change Student Leadership Program.
To learn more about the contest and the AMLE21 Annual Conference, visit amle.org/annual.
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Media Contact
Stephanie Simpson | AMLE | ssimpson@amle.org