1. All participants must be attending a participating Wyoming high school.
  2.  All participants should have a sponsoring teacher to guide them through the writing process, although if you don’t have access to a participating teacher or school, please contact the Contest Coordinator.
  3. The essay must be titled, between 300 and 2,000 words long, and focus on one of the ten Cowboy Ethics.
  4. Essays must be typewritten and double spaced.
  5. Sponsoring teachers must submit essays by Friday, March 2, 2018.
  6.  First place winners must submit a photograph of themselves along with their winning essay in order to be honored at the contest banquet in April. This photograph will be published in the American Dream Essay Contest booklet.
  7. Students may win only one finalist prize per contest year.
  8. A local judging conducted by each school must be held to determine the top three essays.  The BGCCW committee will then judge the local first place essays from each high school to select the state winners.
  9. State winners may not use their essays in other contests.
  10. Once entered, all essays become the possession of the American Dream Essay Contest, and therefore can be distributed partially or in its entirety to media outlets as the committee deems appropriate.
  11. Students MUST BE PRESENT to win at the Award Luncheon, April 15, 2018.