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This story originally appeared in the Jackson Free Press. It was added to the Mississippi Free Press website in 2025.
Note that any opinions expressed in legacy Jackson Free Press stories do not reflect a position of the Mississippi Free Press or necessarily of its staff and board members.

[Verbatim from MPB] Kids, get ready to write and draw! Mississippi Public Broadcasting (MPB) invites kindergarten through third graders to participate in the 15th Annual Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators Contest. Children are encouraged to write and illustrate their original stories and submit them, along with an official entry form, to MPB during the entry period of January 1 through March 31, 2009. Each child who enters receives a special Certificate of Achievement signed by LeVar Burton, host of the “Reading Rainbow” series.

First, second and third place winners are selected for each grade level, with each receiving a DVD copy of a “Reading Rainbow” program and special recognition at the Winners Celebration Event in Jackson. First place winners will advance to the national competition.

According to the contest’s coordinator, Maggie Stevenson, “The “Reading Rainbow” series builds lasting friendships between children and books. The contest, which provides the opportunity for children to exhibit their self-expression through word and art, builds on the program’s mission to stimulate a child’s interest in reading.”

“Reading Rainbow” is broadcast Monday through Friday at12:30 p.m. on MPB.
The contest is conducted in cooperation with MPB and WNED-TV of Buffalo, New York, and Smarterville Productions LLC. Support for the series is provided by Country Inn & Suites by Carlson Inc. and The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations.

Visit http://www.mpbonline.org for the 2009 Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators Contest entry forms, rules, and information.

Founding Editor Donna Ladd is a writer, journalist and editor from Philadelphia, Miss., a graduate of Mississippi State University and later the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism, where she was an alumni award recipient in 2021. She writes about racism/whiteness, poverty, gender, violence, journalism and the criminal justice system. She contributes long-form features and essays to The Guardian when she has time, and was the co-founder and editor-in-chief of the Jackson Free Press. She co-founded the statewide nonprofit Mississippi Free Press with Kimberly Griffin in March 2020, and the Mississippi Business Journal named her one of the state's top CEOs in 2024. Read more at donnaladd.com, follow her on Twitter and Instagram at @donnerkay and email her at donna@mississippifreepress.org.