CMS Fields Strong Power of the Pen Team

A group of Chillicothe Middle School students have been sharpening their creative writing skills through an organization called Power of the Pen.

Mrs. Kellee Sigler, an English language arts teacher at CMS, said that there are a number of students on the CMS Power of the Pen team: Abigail Babcock, Emma Roberts, Elaina Crall, Justice Ngalle, and Stella Ngalle.

She said that the students recently competed in the district writing competition.

"We did fantastic this year," said Sigler. "Out of 185 stories that were submitted in this competition, we had 7 First-Place Stories, 12 Superior Writings, and 8 High Honors."

One Power of the Pen member -- Justice Ngalle -- qualified for the regional competition.

"He did absolutely amazing with his story," said Sigler. "In fact, they have asked if they could publish that story in the Power of the Pen book that comes out yearly."

Sigler said that she hopes that Ngalle will decide to compete at the regional competition in Columbus. That competition will feature 33 school districts and more than 500 submitted stories.

"Kudos to Justice," said Sigler. "We're just so proud of him."

Sigler said she is also proud of how her team represented the Chillicothe City School District.

"Every piece that was submitted by Chillicothe Middle School scored within high honors, and that's just an outstanding feat," Sigler said.

Contributions from Mecca Richardson, Alexis Carroll, and Mason Siberell.