“Bulgaria in Our Hearts” is a competition, sponsored by the Bulgarian language School Hristo Botev Academy, in Washington, DC area, aiming to establish and uplift the knowledge for Bulgaria as well as to accelerate the motivation of students for higher results.

Awards total of $1,600

First Place

  • $1,000 grant to be deposited in a bank account on the name of the winner to be used for college education only;
  • Bulgarian book;
  • Honors Diploma.

Second Place

  • $500 grant to be deposited in a bank account on the name of the winner to be used for college textbooks only;
  • Bulgarian book;
  • Honors Diploma.

Third Place

  • $100 gift certificate for „Barnes & Noble” bookstore;
  • Bulgarian book
  • Honors Diploma.

Encouragement awards for all participants

  • Bulgarian book
  • Honors Diploma.

Requirements for participation

  • All participants should be students of Bulgarian origin between 5th and 12th class and
  • should live approximately within 150 miles from Washington, DC area,
  • should have at least GPA of 3.75 in the American School,
  • should be fluent in Bulgarian language,
  • should know Bulgarian culture, history and geography.

Paperwork

All candidates are required to send the following paperwork:

  • Motivational letter for participation;
  • Student Performance letter by the American school where the student attends;
  • Student Performance letter by the Bulgarian school where the student attends**;
  • A paper signed by the extracurricular activities teachers/instructors at the Bulgarian school where the student participates, if any, accompanied by a short description of the group activities, the student behavior and his/her contribution for the group and the school**;
  • A paper signed by the Bulgarian language and literature teacher in the Bulgarian school (or by the parent if the student does not attend a Bulgarian school), that the student has read the mandatory Bulgarian literature for his/her grade;
  • Book journal, if any, with the books that the student has read in Bulgarian, English or other languages during 2014-2015 with a short resume for each book. It is recommended the resume of each book to be written in the language that the book was read;
  • If the student participated in community events during the period 09/2014-05/2015 let the parent describe shortly these events, his/her motives and the results of the participation. As a supporting evidence pictures can be presented but not more than two pictures per event;
  • Written essay. The topic of the essay to be announced on May 1st, 2015.

Deadline

All required paperwork should be received at the following email address no later than May 24th, 2015

e-mail: chairman@botevacademy.org.

Results

The students that have met the requirements will be notified to appear in person on May 31st, 2015, at 1 p.m. at 8120 Carroll Ave, Takoma Park, MD 20912, for an interview by the independent Jury *** The jury members will ask question on common knowledge and on the literature the students have read during the last year. All participants will be ranked based on their general papers presentation and the results of the interview. Students should bring  their classwork and homework notebooks on Bulgarian Language and Literature and History classes for the period 09/2014 – 05/2015 г.** to the interview. The results will be announced at 5 p.m. on the same day by the Chairman of the Jury via e-mail to all participants.

Essay topic

Each participant should present an essay. The essay should describe interesting personal experience at an event where other Bulgarians were present. There are no restrictions on the subject or the place where the event took place.  Students can use any event type – e.g. birthdays, hiking, holidays at the sea or at the mountains, a day at the Bulgarian school, dancing evenings, family reunions, sports, etc. The title of the essay should be chosen by the student and should be descriptive of the emotions that has moved him/her during the event.

Additional Notes

* If the awarded students do not enroll in college up to three years after graduation from High school the award will be declared void and will be redirected to other competitions or enterprises of a similar character.

** This requirement does not apply to students that do not attend a Bulgarian school in America.

*** The jury should consist of people of Bulgarian origin with high level of spoken and written Bulgarian language. The jury members should not have children in any of the Bulgarian schools in the U.S.A., should not be currently involved in the teaching process in the Bulgarian schools, and should have high level of education and professional (management, leadership or innovative) experience.