BEACHWOOD, Ohio, April 4, 2025 – The Maltz Museum proudly announces the 2025 Stop the Hate Youth Speak Out and Youth Sing Out Contest winners. The contest annually awards $100,000 to Northeast Ohio middle and high school students, teachers, and schools who stand up to hate and discrimination. Winners were announced during an awards ceremony on April 3rd at the Tri-C Cuyahoga Community College Eastern Campus.
With more than 400 in attendance, the award ceremony included the announcement of a new partnership with the Cleveland Cavaliers, along with the launch of the Stop the Hate Alumni Network. In addition to highlighting the many essays, poems, and songs created by Northeast Ohio students, participants from previous years expressed the impact of the program on their lives.
Speaking at the ceremony, Aaron Petersal, Executive Director of the Maltz Museum, said: “This year marks a special milestone, as we celebrate 20 years of the Maltz Museum and 17 years of Stop the Hate, a program so essential to our mission. Nearly 50,000 students have participated in this program, bringing the Museum’s vision to life by upholding respect and understanding.
“As we look toward the next 20 years, we are committed to continuing this important work through Stop the Hate and our exhibitions, programs, partnerships, and networks. We are especially excited to announce that we are launching a Stop the Hate Alumni network, where past participants can connect, continue the vital work they started in this program, and build a lasting community throughout the country.”
The Stop the Hate contest has multiple components: Youth Speak Out essay and poetry writing and Youth Sing Out songwriting for classrooms. Both celebrate upstanding Northeast Ohio students in grades six through twelve who are committed to creating a more accepting, inclusive society. This year, students participating in the contest created essays, poems, and songs reflecting on the following quote:
“Despite all the troubles of our world, in my heart I have never given up on the love in which I was brought up…In life, just as on the artist’s palette, there is but one single colour that gives meaning to life and art–the colour of love” – Marc Chagall
Since the contest started, over 50,000 students in 15 counties across Northeast Ohio have participated, and $1.7 million has been awarded to students and schools. This year, over 4,400 students at more than 160 Northeast Ohio schools participated in the Stop the Hate contest, writing individual essays, poetry, or group songs for a chance to win scholarships and education grants for themselves and their schools.
Visit the Maltz Museum’s website to read the original essays, poetry, and songs created by our inspiring Northeast Ohio students: www.maltzmuseum.org/sth25
Nandita Srikumar, an 11th-grade student at Solon High School, was named grand prize winner of the essay contest by a panel of three judges during live scoring at the awards ceremony.
“Second by second, minute by minute, I could see the dementia patient being more and more excluded.
At that moment, I felt a wave of emotions crash through me: empathy for the caregivers, sympathy for the patient, and a sense of resonance for the 7 million dementia patients and their caregivers in the United States. I knew something had to be done. Could I find a solution to aid both the patient and the caregiver?
I began to research the costly toll that impacts both the patient and the caregiver. I realized that while caregivers make every effort to help their loved ones, the simple, yet profound, fact that dementia has no cure leads to caregivers feeling more and more hopeless. This ongoing cycle leads to unintentional hatred by the caregivers, causing social isolation of the patient.
Realizing the gravity of this issue and the fact that the best cure to prevent dementia is preserving one’s brain health, I knew I had to go one step further. While I couldn’t hit the reverse button for the patient’s life, I could pave a journey for the next generation: a journey against dementia, a journey against unintentional hatred, and a journey for brain health inclusivity.”
Read Nandita’s full essay, along with those of the other remarkable finalists: www.maltzmuseum.org/sth25
2024 Youth Speak Out: Essay & Poetry Contest Winners
Youth Speak Out Essays: 11th – 12th Grade
Grand Prize: $20,000 scholarship + $5,000 anti-bias education grant for their school
Nandita Srikumar, Grade 11, Solon High School
First Runner-Up: $10,000 scholarship + $2,000 anti-bias education grant for their school
Rania Rafiq, Grade 12, Aurora High School
Second Runner Up: $5,000 scholarship + $2,000 anti-bias education grant for their school
Sana Hameed, Grade 11, North Royalton High School
Honorable Mentions: ALL receive a $1,000 cash prize + a $500 anti-bias education grant for their schools
Will Colafella, Grade 12, Hudson High School
Angela Freeman, Grade 12, St. Vincent-St. Mary High School
Mackenzie Lane Frost, Grade 12, Aurora High School
Manisha K. Girn, Grade 12, Aurora High School
Amelia Kilway, Grade 11, Aurora High School
Tori Smith, Grade 12, Magnificat High School
Lamaree DeShae White, Grade 12, Rhodes School of Environmental Studies
Youth Speak Out Essays: 6th – 10th Grade
10th Grade:
First Place: $400 cash prize
Jashmina Bista, Cleveland School of Science and Medicine
Runner Up: $100 cash prize
Addison Captain, Shaker Heights High School
9th Grade:
First Place: $400 cash prize
Rebecca Chelbezan, Kenston High School
Runner Up: $100 cash prize
Lyla Levin, Laurel School
8th Grade:
First Place: $400 cash prize
Sophia Tsuang, Laurel School
Runner Up: $100 cash prize
Abby Gourley, Beachwood Middle School
7th Grade:
First Place: $400 cash prize
Farai Amanda Chiunda, Beachwood Middle School
Runner Up: $100 cash prize
Asha R. Bauer, Hathaway Brown
6th Grade:
First Place: $400 cash prize
Adeline Chalker, Harding Middle School
Runner Up: $100 cash prize
Mia Schilkowski, Hudson Middle School
Youth Speak Out Poetry: High School
First Place: $2,500 cash prize + $2,000 anti-bias education grant for their school
Cara Miller, Grade 10, Garfield Heights High School
Second Place: $1,500 cash prize + $1,000 anti-bias education grant for their school
Nicholas Stalnaker, Grade 10, Oberlin High School
Third Place: $1,000 cash prize + $1,000 anti-bias education grant for their school
Roman Hoyle-Smith, Grade 10, Oberlin High School
Honorable Mentions: ALL receive a $600 cash prize
Rebecca Ester, Grade 11, Glenville High School
Teresa Gladish, Grade 11, Twinsburg High School
Martha Louise Röseler, Grade 10, Kirtland High School
Youth Speak Out Poetry: Middle School
First Place: $400 cash prize
Miina Tabata, Grade 8, Hudson Middle School
Second Place: $300 cash prize
Zoey Bloom, Grade 6, North Ridgeville Academic Center
Third Place: $200 cash prize
Madelyn Kimberly, Grade 7, North Ridgeville Academic Center
Honorable Mentions: ALL receive a $100 cash prize
Ella Bogniard, Grade 6, Hudson Middle School
Elliot Gionfriddo, Grade 6, North Ridgeville Academic Center
Lam Tran, Grade 8, Hudson Middle School
2024 Youth Sing Out: Song Contest Winners
First Place High School: $3,500 anti-bias education grant for their school
Title: “Everyone is Equal”
Violet Taylor’s 7th Period Class
Collinwood High School
ROOTS of American Music Teaching Artist: Charlie Mosbrook
Runner Up High School: $2,000 anti-bias education grant for their school
Title: “Weak People with Power”
Antoinette Brown’s 7th Period Class
Shaw High School
ROOTS of American MusicTeaching Artist: Charlie Mosbrook
First Place Middle School: $3,500 anti-bias education grant for their school
Title: “Stop the Violence”
Mary Matisak’s 3rd Period Class
Milkovich Middle School
ROOTS of American Music Teaching Artist: Ester Fitz
Runner Up Middle School: $2,000 anti-bias education grant for their school
Title: “Listen to our Words”
Aaron Waryk’s 6th Grade Class
Harding Middle School
ROOTS of American Music Teaching Artist: Charlie Mosbrook
Stop the Hate: Teachers of the Year
Together, with its partners, the Maltz Museum named two Stop the Hate Teachers of the Year. Each received a $1,000 cash prize in recognition of their commitment to anti-bias education.
Congratulations to Helena Toplak, Horizon Science Academy Cleveland High School and Matthew Thompson, Garfield Heights Middle School.
Stop the Hate: Anti-Bias Community Grants
This year, Northeast Ohio educators dedicated to creating inclusive learning environments were invited to apply for one of three $6,000 anti-bias community grants. The Maltz Museum has awarded three recipients:
Incarnate Word Academy
Urban Community School
Windham Jr/Sr High School
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About the Maltz Museum:
Rooted in the Jewish value of respect for all humanity, the Maltz Museum explores diverse stories of courage from history and today so that there can be a more inclusive tomorrow. The museum is generously supported by Cuyahoga Arts & Culture, the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, and the Ohio Arts Council. For tickets call 216-593-0575 or visit www.maltzmuseum.org
About Stop the Hate:
Now in its 17th year, Stop the Hate is the Maltz Museum’s signature educational program, serving Northeast Ohio students and school communities through opportunities that encourage personal storytelling to build bridges and create empathy. Through this program, students gain awareness of issues of hate, discrimination, bullying, etc., while also being inspired to courageously create positive change when faced with these challenges. This Maltz Museum initiative celebrates Northeast Ohio students committed to creating a more accepting and inclusive society.
As of April 2025, the total amount of scholarships, prizes, and anti-bias education grants awarded through the contest to Northeast Ohio students, teachers, and schools is $1.7 million.
For more information about the program please visit maltzmuseum.org or contact education@mmjh.org.
Stop the Hate® is made possible by the generous support of board and committee members, volunteer readers and judges, sponsors and partners, and more. To see a complete list of the many people and organizations involved in making Stop the Hate possible, please visit www.maltzmuseum.org/sth25
Location, Admission, & Hours: The Maltz Museum is located at 2929 Richmond Road in Beachwood, OH.
- Admission: $12 for adults, $10 for seniors (60+) and students, $5 for youth (5-11), and FREE for Maltz Museum Members and children under 5.
- Hours: Tuesday – Sunday, 11 am -5 pm, Wednesday, 11 am – 9 pm. Closed on Mondays and most major holidays.
Museums for All: We offer free general admission to individuals and families with a Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card or a Women, Infants, & Children (WIC) card. Visitors must present a valid form of photo ID. To claim free tickets, please call 216-593-0575 before visiting.
