Too often, it seems that students are caught up in the daily grind of tests and homework. The upcoming Elie Wiesel Prize in Ethics Essay Contest may be a rare chance for UNC Charlotte students to reflect on ethics, whether it be about Chinese sweat shops, corrupt government or an issue closer to home.

Born in 1928, Elie Weisel was 15-years-old when the Nazis deported him and his family to Auschwitz. He and his two older sisters survived, but his mother and little sister did not. Wiesel is well known for writing his autobiography, Night, which details his struggle to stay alive in the death camps.

He is currently the Founding Chairman of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council and heads the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity, an organization to fight indifference, intolerance, and injustice.

The Elie Wiesel Prize in Ethics Contest is designed to challenge college students to critically analyze ethical issues and write insightful personal essays that raise questions and single out issues.

Full-time undergraduate juniors and seniors at four-year colleges during the fall 2006 semester are eligible. The entry deadline is Dec. 8, 2006. The Award for First Prize is $5,000 and Second Prize is $2,500.

All college students that meet the requirements are encouraged to enter the contest, no matter their experience in writing. "We appeal to college students to send us their essays. We promise you they will not be ignored." Wiesel says. "In fact, we shall be proud to be your first readers. And perhaps your first critics and publishers."

For more info, visit: http://www.eliewieselfoundation.org.