Dalton, GA ā Dalton Public Schools held its annual Young Georgia Authors celebration on Wednesday, March 25, at Hammond Creek Middle School. Students from across the district were recognized for their outstanding writing achievements during the event, which honored winners at the school, district, and Northwest Georgia RESA (Regional Educational Service Agency) levels.
The Young Georgia Authors (YGA) writing competition encourages students from kindergarten through 12th grade to develop their writing skills and express their creativity. School-level winners were recognized first, followed by district winners, and finally the Northwest Georgia RESA winners. Students who earned RESA honors will advance to the state-level competition, which will take place next month.
School-Level Winners
Kindergarten
Blue Ridge ā Riley Flood ā My Favorite Thing to do at Recess
Brookwood ā Asa Anderson ā The Most Magical Trip!
City Park ā Luis Contreras ā Magwaey
Park Creek ā Elizabeth Parker ā What My Dog Dus
Roan School ā Daniela Gomez ā Lukas
Westwood ā Brooks Palmer ā My Favorite Animals
First Grade
Blue Ridge ā Rocio Zavala ā My Favorite Animal
Brookwood ā Manuel Navarro Jr. ā My Trip to Mexico
City Park ā Darcy Coronado Marroquin ā Cats
Park Creek ā Lilian Ibanez Bautista ā Information About Jellyfish
Roan School ā Gael Hernandez ā Take a Trip to the North Pole
Westwood ā Charley Cate Haynes ā Virginia
Second Grade
Blue Ridge ā Dania Sanchez-Redo ā The Princess and the Prince
Brookwood ā Trey Causby ā Water Sports
City Park ā Aiden Sheppard ā The Play Room Disaster!
Park Creek ā Camila Maldonado ā The Story of Rex
Roan School ā Alexa Rowland ā The Elf Story
Westwood ā Charlotte Cagle ā Harry and Tod's Problem
Third Grade
Blue Ridge ā Vina Ortiz ā Ruby Bridges
Brookwood ā Ella Tanner ā Twin Tower Trouble
City Park ā Luna Flores ā Little Artist Miya
Park Creek ā Leila Ambrocio De Leon ā How Penguins Survive
Roan School ā Robert Morales Ramos ā The Day it Changed Dark!
Westwood ā Nicholas Bender ā Become a Pro Fisherman
Fourth Grade
Blue Ridge ā Esteban Moreno ā Dragons of the Missing Kingdom
Brookwood ā Callie Cantrell ā Nutcracker: Total Disaster
City Park ā Lyrical Bombita ā How I Chipped My Tooth
Park Creek ā Juan Cervantes Zarate ā The Evil Computer
Roan School ā Mariana Burbano Suarez ā Colombia
Westwood ā Marissa Hester ā Sherman
Fifth Grade
Blue Ridge ā Keiyli Ambrocio Mendez ā Pablo Gets Karma
Brookwood ā Lynnlee Ellison ā The Artist
City Park ā Shamorie Broome ā How Breaking My Arm Changed My Life
Park Creek ā Lisbeth Ambrocio De Leon ā There is No Time
Roan School ā Adriana Castillo ā El Salvador
Westwood ā Penelope Velasquez ā Best Friends
Sixth Grade (Hammond Creek Middle)
Kimberly Adame ā Misogyny in Pink
Daniela Favela ā My Victory
Oliver Gonzalez ā That One Friend
Ella Gray Pennington ā The Superheroes
Sadie McKeehan ā A Path to Forever
Brenner Thornton ā My Baseball Experience
Seventh Grade (Hammond Creek Middle)
Allison Acuna ā Numbers
Rodrigo Castillo ā Broken Promises
Catalina Garcia ā Change
Emmett Gray ā Music is So Powerful
Daniela Martinez ā My Invisible Scar
Callie Ward ā Will History Be Kind to Me
Eighth Grade (Dalton Junior High)
Adriana Vance ā The Garden Wall
Linzy Odiy Gracia ā The Tale of Jake: A Story of Mysteries & Betrayal
Eshal Ahmed ā A Sweet Little Lie
Andrea Avila Martinez ā Memories Beneath the Old Tree
Landon Lewis ā Home
Evelyn Navarro ā The Bittersweet Taste of You
The Dalton Academy
9th Grade
Alexandra Hernandez ā Witch
Juan Salazar-Trejo ā Should Homework Be Banned
Guadalupe Herrera ā Better Education
Jacob Linley ā Ocean Conservation and Why it Has the Biggest Impact on the Environment
10th Grade
Brandon Navas ā When Silver Ruled the World
Zaniya McKenzie ā The Disturbance
Alexa Perez-Rios ā A Deep-Strong Connection
Sharon Chen ā Not Too Sweet
Ricardo Hernandez ā The Today I Was Accepted
Tomas Gonzalez Jr. ā Ars Mortis (The Art of Death)
11th Grade
Cheyanne E. Garcia ā Don't Take It For Granted
David Linares ā The Process of Life
Nathalie Andrews ā Prayer
Jeiry Gonsales ā Long Walk to the City
12th Grade
Gabriela Ruelas ā Letting Go
Lizeth Avila Martinez ā Moving
Ella Austin Fries ā House
Lesley Morales ā Late Never Came
Fredy Reynoso ā The Last Tail Wag
Geovany Aguirre ā Carpet Appreciation
Dalton High School
9th Grade
Brianna Vidana ā Leave Now
Briona Markwardt ā Lost Innocence
Nataly Gutierrez ā You
Nataly Gutierrez ā Luck
Salma El Mtouni ā The Hunter is Hunted
Yosselin Tzib Ambrocio ā A Red Rose's Secret
10th Grade
Elijah Ordonez ā She Thrives
Anslie Wright ā A Kiss Can't Heal My Scars
Mayra Villalobos ā Lolita and Nino: A Story of Perseverance
11th Grade
Sydney Brown ā Held Here
Mary Sharp ā Footsteps
Isabel Perez ā Inharmonious Love
Jason Hennon ā Glass Child
Natalia Villalobos ā What Comes Next
Noelia Guerrero ā The Jacaranda Tree Collection
12th Grade
Valeria A. Ferreira-Ponce ā Echoes of My Mommy
Victoria Amaro ā Why Me?
Alexander Queen ā Driftwood
Asa Alexander ā Forward and Backward
Leslie Orellana ā Soft Whispers of Hope
Matthew Pittman ā The Mind Reader's Dilemma
District-Level Winners
Kindergarten
Brookwood ā Asa Anderson ā The Most Magical Trip!
First Grade
Park Creek ā Lilian Ibanez Bautista ā Information About Jellyfish
Second Grade
Park Creek ā Camila Maldonado ā The Story of Rex
Third Grade
Park Creek ā Leila Ambrocio De Leon ā How Penguins Survive
Fourth Grade
City Park ā Lyrical Bombita ā How I Chipped My Tooth
Fifth Grade
Brookwood ā Lynnlee Ellison ā The Artist
Sixth Grade
Hammond Creek Middle ā Kimberly Adame ā Misogyny in Pink
Seventh Grade
Hammond Creek Middle ā Daniela Martinez ā My Invisible Scar
Eighth Grade
Dalton Junior High ā Linzy Odiy Gracia ā The Tale of Jake: A Story of Mysteries & Betrayal
Ninth Grade
Dalton High School ā Briona Markwardt ā Lost Innocence
Tenth Grade
The Dalton Academy ā Tomas Gonzalez Jr. ā Ars Mortis (The Art of Death)
Eleventh Grade
Dalton High School ā Mary Sharp ā Footsteps
Twelfth Grade
The Dalton Academy ā Fredy Reynoso ā The Last Tail Wag
Northwest Georgia RESA Winners
Two Dalton Public Schools students placed first in their grade levels at the Northwest Georgia RESA Young Georgia Authors competition. Their writing will advance to the state competition on April 17, 2026.
Kindergarten
Brookwood Elementary ā Asa Anderson ā The Most Magical Trip!
Eleventh Grade
Dalton High School ā Mary Sharp ā Footsteps
Dalton Public Schools is proud of all students who participated in this yearās Young Georgia Authors competition. Their hard work, creativity, and commitment to writing were on full display throughout the event. The district looks forward to cheering on our RESA winners as they represent Dalton Public Schools at the state level.
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