Hispanic Heritage Month contest invites student essays

BETHPAGE, N.Y. — Cablevision’s Optimum Community and Olympusat invite middle and high school students to contribute essays to a contest celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month.

This year's contest asks students to “Name a Latino, past or present, with whom you would choose to spend a day and explain why.”

All essays must be submitted in English either through the Optimum Community website www.optimum.net/community, emailed to edinfo@cablevision.com, or mailed to Cablevision: Attention Optimum Community, 1111 Stewart Ave., Bethpage, NY 11714. Entries will be accepted through Nov. 2 and cannot exceed 500 words.

Four winners in both the middle- and high-school categories will be selected and announced in December. Prizes include a $2,500 cash scholarship (grand prize), a tablet computer (first prize), a laptop computer (second prize) and a Kindle Fire (third prize). Olympusat is the provider of such Spanish-language channels as CubaPlay, Cine Mexicano, Enlace and TV Chile, available on the Optimum en español programming service.

“Optimum Community is proud to partner again with Olympusat to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with the launch of our essay contest,” said Cablevision Vice President of Public Affairs Jen Ostrager. “This is a great opportunity for students in the tri-state area to focus on the ethnic diversity of our nation and, in particular, to appreciate the many achievements and contributions made by Hispanic Americans throughout the years.”