Student Instructions

Find all the information you need to apply for the contest here.

Option One:

If your community is more than 100 years old, consider how to bring preservation planning efforts up-to-date in your essay. For example, consider whether and how old buildings or neighborhoods contribute to sustainability.*

Option Two

If your community was built after 1945, consider how to preserve the recent past. Consider how a preservation plan should deal with more modern buildings and features.

Option Three

If your community has a significant historic plan (such as a City Beautiful* plan) that is more than 75 years old, consider what elements of that plan are still relevant and worth preserving. Give special consideration to how the plan may promote sustainability.

An asterisk (*) indicates that you should go to the Resources, Definitions, and Research Assistance page for assistance.

Step-by-Step Instructions

There are seven key steps to completing the project.

• Explore your community's history
• Interview a preservationist
• Interview a planner
• Select your area of preservation
• Determine threats to preservation
• Explore options for how your historic area may be preserved and how historic buildings and sites can continue to function
• Write your essay

Step One

Explore Your Community's History

Find the date the community was founded
Find the dates of earliest settlement
Determine the first period of major growth and development
*Find the original plan or plat for your community
Find important plans more than 75 years old
Locate the oldest buildings in your community
Locate the oldest neighborhood or district within your community

Step Two

Interview a Preservationist

*Contact your local historical society, preservation organization, preservation review board, or library to locate a preservationist
*If your community does not have a preservationist, contact the State Historic Preservation Office
If your community was built after 1945, ask the state preservationist what plans they have for your community
Learn what the designated historic buildings and areas are in your community
Learn what the threats are to preserving these buildings and areas
Find out what has been done to preserve these buildings and areas

Step Three

Interview a Planner

Determine whether the community has a preservation plan or preservation program
*Ask the planner to explain how the preservation fits into the community's overall plan(s)
*Find out if your community has a sustainability plan. Determine how this plan does or does not relate to preservation.
Find out if there are any important historic plans. Obtain a copy of the historic plan.
*Learn what planners do
Learn how plans are prepared, who adopts them, and how actions are taken to implement them.

Step Four

Select Your Area of Preservation

Select the area, elements, and features you consider most important to your community that you wish to preserve. You may decide these elements, buildings, areas, and features are important architecturally and historically or contribute to sustainability.

If you opt to explore a significant historic plan, what elements and features of the early plan still exist today? Which elements and features contribute to sustainability?

Obtain a street and block map from your planning department or city engineering department. Or print a map with streets and blocks from Google Maps. Set the boundaries of the area you wish to preserve. Draw them on your map.

Photograph or draw 4 representative buildings in your selected preservation area and locate the buildings on your map.

Record any other special features in your area (landscape, parks, boulevards, scenic views, landmarks); photograph or draw at least two. Features may include the size of lots on which buildings stand, how close or far from the street the building is sites. Locate the special features on your map.

Consider why your designated buildings, areas, and features should be preserved. Read the national standards for designating buildings, neighborhoods, or area historic and worthy of preservation. The national list is called the National Register of Historic Places. Read the Criteria for Listing.*

Step Five

Determine the Threats to Preservation

Through your research, observation, and interviews, determine threats to the historic buildings and features of your selected area. For example, some historic buildings may be unoccupied and are deteriorating. Your historic area may be situated in a floodplain and may flood. A large new development may be planned that would require demolishing buildings. Or, eco-friendly advocates are arguing that all old buildings are energy inefficient and should be torn down. Consider all potential threats.

Your research could focus on issues such those below. There are many other considerations as well.

Contemporary Uses for Historic Buildings
Restoration and Maintenance for Historic Buildings
Environmental Concerns
The Character of the Community

Step Six

Explore Options for Historic Preservation

Explore how your historic area may be preserved and how historic buildings and sites will continue to function. Through your research, find out what tools and programs are available to help preserve communities. Your interviews with a preservationist and planner will be helpful. Also, look at the website of the State Historic Preservation Office in your state or the statewide preservation organization.*

Step Seven

Write the Essay

Present your plan in an essay format. Your essay will be no less than 1,200 words and no more than 1,500.

The plan will consist of:

• Identification of the problem and threats: discuss the problems facing your community and its historic character and preservation.
• Goals: explain what you intend to preserve and why. Indicate whether you are addressing option one, two, or three in your essay.
• Elements of the plan: select two or more of the following issues that your plan will address:
  • Contemporary Uses for Historic Buildings
  • Restoration and Maintenance for Historic Buildings
  • Preserving and Introducing Again Good Elements of a Significant Historic Plan
  • New Community Needs and More Intensive Use of the Space of Land
  • Criteria for Preserving the Recent Past
  • Environmental Concerns and Sustainability
  • The Character of the Community
• How your plan relates to existing plans (if any): explain how what you propose relates to existing plans for preserving or sustaining your community. If your community has no preservation plan or planning, mention that in the essay.
• Actions: explain the actions you propose the community should take in order to better preserve its history.
• Adopting the plan: explain to whom you will propose your plan. Explain who will support your plan.
• Bibliography: list all books, newspaper articles, websites, and interviews (list the name and job title of the person and the date of the interview) you used. An interview with a planner is required.
• Map of preservation area: prepare and submit the map of your proposed area of preservation. You may scan and attach to electronic submittals or attach to mailed submittals.
• Photos or drawings of 6 buildings or features: include with your application. You may mail hard copies or scan and include with electronic submittal.

Submitting Your Essay

Find out how to submit your completed essay

Resources, Definitions, and Research Assistance

Find information here to get a solid start on researching your essay