Curtis Northcutt, a junior at Lafayette High School, garnered second place in the 2008 Photo-Essay Competition sponsored by Preservation Kentucky Inc. and the Kentucky Heritage Council. His entry featured Julia R. Ewan Elementary School.

    In addition, Lafayette snared the Outstanding Participation Award. With 62 students competing, Lafayette had more than any other school.

    “A lot of different things were addressed. It was pretty neat,” said Susannah Kilbourne, an English teacher, who noted that her students examined everything from industrial buildings to historic homes as they explored this year’s theme: Restore-Reuse-Recycle.

    “I drive by it a lot, and I went there when I was a kid,” said Northcutt, explaining why he chose Julia R. Ewan Elementary as his topic. “The subject is always the most important part; the writing comes second,” he added, noting this was his first writing contest.

    Kilbourne wanted her arts and humanities students to look at their surroundings with a critical eye as they applied the elements of photography and practiced their analytical writing skills. They had to study their subjects’ architecture, history, context and use for their portfolio projects, which were required for class. About half of Kilbourne’s 120 students entered the Photo-Essay Competition.

    Three other Lafayette juniors -- Jon Finnie, Ami Klinker and Laine Putteet -- were finalists and will receive “honorable mention” certificates. Neil Stepter, a fifth-grader at Julia R. Ewan Elementary School, also was a finalist.

    The winners will be honored at 2 p.m. Wednesday May 21 in the Capitol Rotunda in Frankfort; a reception will follow at the Executive Mansion. The winning photos and essays will be posted at www.preservationkentucky.org by early June.

    The Photo-Essay Competition has been held annually since 1999. First-, second- and third-place winners are selected from three grade divisions.