A Gov and Beyond:
The First-Year Writing Journal at APSU
Courses in the First-Year Writing sequence at Austin Peay provide students with the skills and opportunity to analyze the rhetoric around them and to join the conversations occurring in the academic, professional, and public communities of which they are members.
Each Spring, the First-Year Writing Program hosts the First-Year Writing Competition. Students who were enrolled in ENGL 1005, ENGL 1010, and/or ENGL 1020 during the current academic year, can submit work completed for these courses to be reviewed by a panel of faculty judges. Winners of the competition are awarded a cash prize and have their work published in A Gov and Beyond: The First-Year Writing Journal at APSU.
A Gov and Beyond celebrates the impressive work our students complete and reflects the interests and concerns that spur student engagement each academic year. Additionally, the journal serves as a resource that future students can refer to as they begin their writing journey.
If you would like to see your writing featured in A Gov and Beyond, 2025-2026 Edition, submit your paper to the First-Year Writing Competition by March 26, 2026, using the following form.
First-Year Writing Competition Winners,
2024-2025
First Place
"Fighting Fear with Love: A Family's Battle during the Pandemic" by Zeel Patel
Second Place
"Learned the Hard Way" by Rachel Masters
Third Place
"'I Am. All of Us.'" by Aaliyah Jackson
Honorable Mentions
"Slay the Sam: Chains of Camouflage" by Cooper Taylor
"Robots Don't Need Billionaires" by Cooper Taylor
First Place
"The Road: A Fable for the Modern Era" by Andrew Abrams
Second Place
"Suicide among U.S. Military: Expanding on Prevention Program Efficiency" by Crystal Hubbs
Third Place
"Poe's Mechanism of Terror and Influence on Modern Horror" by Dylan Hulon
Honorable Mentions
"Exploiting the World's Most Poetical Topic: Poe's Use of Women as Objects of Terror" by Dylan Hulon
"Finding Fulfillment" by Nathan Geyrozaga
A Gov and Beyond Flipbooks
To view the journal in its entirety, check out our annual flipbook!
2024-2025
2023-2024
Essay Archive
Archived essays do not contain pictures.
ENGL 1010
2024-2025
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"Fighting Fear with Love: A Family's Battle during the Pandemic" by Zeel Patel (First Place)
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"Learned the Hard Way" by Rachel Masters (Second Place)
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"'I Am. All of Us.'" by Aaliyah Jackson (Third Place)
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"Slay the Sam: Chains of Camouflage" by Cooper Taylor (Honorable Mention)
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"Robots Don't Need Billionaires" by Cooper Taylor (Honorable Mention)
2023-2024
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"The Growing Need for Public Transportation Improvements: Nashville, TN" by Joseph Spaeth (First Place)
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"Learning How to Argue: A Reflection" by Joseph Spaeth (Second Place)
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"Identity and Violence in "Pomegranate Means Grenade" by Jamaal May" by Avery Hoang (Third Place)
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"Music as a Global Language" by Zoe Wolf (Third Place)
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"TicTac Dealer" by Valentina-Iulia Necoara (Honorable Mention)
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"Planet or Plastic" by Anna Rita (Honorable Mention)
ENGL 1020
2024-2025
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"The Road: A Fable for the Modern Era" by Andrew Abrams (First Place)
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"Suicide among U.S. Military: Expanding on Prevention Program Efficiency" by Crystal Hubbs (Second Place)
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"Poe's Mechanism of Terror and Influence on Modern Horror" by Dylan Hulon (Third Place)
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"Exploiting the World's Most Poetical Topic: Poe's Use of Women as Objects of Terror" by Dylan Hulon (Honorable Mention)
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"Finding Fulfillment" by Nathan Geyrozaga (Honorable Mention)
2023-2024
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"Argument Essay: Abortion (Stance: Pro-Choice)" by Christopher Sarageno (First Place)
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"From Calculators to AI: From Parallel to Guideline" by Christopher Jhanson (Second Place)
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"Assistance" by Alexandra Allen (Third Place)
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"Comfort Within Our Uncertainty" by Leah Williams (Honorable Mention)
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"What Would You Do" by Jennifer Trujillo (Honorable Mention)