The winners of the annual South Carolina Outdoor Press Association’s (SCOPE) Youth Outdoor Writing Competition were announced at the organization’s 2026 awards banquet in Greenwood, SC on October 10th, 2026. The conference was hosted by Discover Greenwood.
High School students from throughout South Carolina participated in the competition. The winning entries were: First Place, Ellie Taylor from Marietta, SC; Second Place, Daley Boykin from Sumter, SC; and Third Place, Ross McMilllan III from Mount Pleasant, SC.
All three received monetary awards. The first-place entry received $1000, the second $500, and the third $250. Plus, the winning entry, from Ellie Taylor, will be published in the November/December 2026 issue of the South Carolina Wildlife magazine, and the second and third place winners’ entries will appear in the December issue of Carolina Sportsman. In addition, the students will receive free SCOPE student memberships for one year and a one-year subscription to South Carolina Wildlife magazine.
SCOPE partnered with the Hampton Wildlife Fund and South Carolina Wildlife magazine to sponsor the South Carolina Youth Outdoor Writing Competition. The competition was open to high school students in grades 9-12.
The primary focus area for entry topics relates to our natural resources and enjoyment of the outdoors. The core components of the contest are writing a 300-to-500-word story of interest to the writer and expressing why or how natural resources are important to them.
Many high school students are beginning to plan their college fields of study. This competition provides a platform for them to test/develop their communication skills and learn about outdoor communication careers, while possibly earning a monetary prize and being published in one of two excellent wildlife magazines.
The South Carolina Outdoor Press Association has been an active organization since 1985, providing outdoor media coverage throughout South Carolina and nationally. Media outlets include writing for magazines and newspapers, photography for various media sources, radio, TV, podcasts and social media. Our current estimate is that SCOPE media representatives have more than 30 million interactions annually via our media efforts.
The 2027 Youth Writing Competition will begin next spring. For more information, contact Joey Frazier at frazier.jam96@gmail.com. ■