The Tom Bonner Memorial Award

The Tom Bonner Memorial award is given to a student in a 200 level literature class who has produced an outstanding research essay on a work of literature.  Instructors will be looking for high quality essays that demonstrate a student’s ability to analyze a work of literature and support his or her analysis with a substantial amount of secondary sources.   

A cash award will be given to the student whose essay is deemed best by the Tom Bonner Memorial Award Committee.  The student will also be recognized at the Midlands Technical College Awards Ceremony. 

Eligibility:

The student must be a non-transient student, must have received an “A” or “A-” on the paper, and must be nominated by his or her instructor in the course.  The work must be entirely the student’s own, except for advice received from the instructor, ASC tutors or other appropriate mentors.  The paper must have been written for a 200 level course in the preceding spring, summer, or fall terms, with the award presented in the following April.  A student who has won the award may not apply a second time. 

Criteria:

The essay must be an in-depth analysis of one or more pieces of literature, written for a 200 level English course. 

The essay must contain a substantial number of secondary sources, supportive of the student’s analysis. 

The essay must adhere to MLA format:

• proper use of quotes to support the student’s analysis

• correct parenthetical citations within the body of the essay

• a Works Cited page that adheres to MLA guidelines 

A folder must be submitted containing the following:

• The student’s essay

• copies of the articles used in his or her research (copies of title pages for books).

• an electronic version of the student’s essay.