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Essay: Youth Violence

13-year-old Mira Reynolds is one of two Utah students to represent the state in the national \"Do the Write Thing\" anti-violence essay contest.
Photo courtesy of Dynette Reynolds
13-year-old Mira Reynolds is one of two Utah students to represent the state in the national \"Do the Write Thing\" anti-violence essay contest.

By Mira Reynolds

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kuer/local-kuer-836856.mp3

Ogden, UT – The statistics surrounding youth violence are sobering. According to the federal Centers for Disease Control, 30 percent of 6th to 10th graders in the United States were either a bully, a target of bullying, or both last year. Over 12 percent reported being in a fight at school while nearly 8 percent reported being threatened or injured with a weapon on school property.

To counter the violence, the national "Do the Write Thing" essay contest encourages 7th and 8th grade students to write about how violence has affected them and how they can prevent it. 770 Utah students submitted essays this year, and here is one of this year's winners, 13-year-old Mira Reynolds.

Mira Reynolds is an eighth grader at Highland Junior High in Ogden. She and Kyler (Nielson of Desert Hills Middle School in St. George are the Utah winners in this year's "Do the Write Thing" national essay contest, which promotes violence prevention.

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