Contests

My County Poster Contest 2026

A Poster Contest for fourth graders

Sponsored by Bergen County’s Constitutional Officers (Clerk, Surrogate, and Sheriff)

To help promote the awareness of the work accomplished throughout New Jersey’s 21 counties, the Bergen County Clerk, John S. Hogan, and the Constitutional Officers are sponsoring their annual poster contest called “My County”.

Your Bergen County Constitutional Officers are inviting all fourth graders, who generally study the State of New Jersey as part of their social studies curriculum, to design a poster for the contest.

County Government in New Jersey is responsible for various tasks, including county road maintenance, jail operations, mortgage and deed recordings, voting procedures, protection of the rights of minors, and more.

Participation is easy, just follow these simple rules:

• The poster must be on standard 22” x 28” poster board. The poster may be illustrated vertically or horizontally.
• The name BERGEN must appear in 4-inch letters (caps) formed in black at the top of the poster.
• The student’s name, teacher’s name, school, and the student’s town must be printed neatly on the back of the poster. Please do not use labels.
• Posters cannot be folded.

The design and content of the poster is at the discretion of the student. Special knowledge or background is not needed. A general guideline would be to depict what makes Bergen County unique. The posters should focus on emphasizing Bergen County’s special qualities such as historical sites, famous places, etc.

All winners will be invited to Law Day on May 1st at 3:00 pm to be recognized and have a photograph taken with the Constitutional Officers.

All 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners, as well as honorable mentions, will receive an award for their participation. The top 20 posters will also be featured in the 2027 County Clerk’s Election Calendar.

Please send posters to:

Bergen County Clerk’s Office
One Bergen County Plaza, Room 122
Hackensack, NJ 07601

Posters must be received no later than Monday, April 13th.

If you have any questions, please contact Antoinette Colletti at 201-336-7051.

NOTE: All posters become the property of COANJ and the County of Bergen. Submission of the poster grants the Constitutional Officer Association permission to display the poster in a public place.

Congratulations to Elizabeth Maxwell, a senior at Northern Valley Regional High School at Demarest, on being the proud recipient of the Five Star Student Award for December. Elizabeth’s achievements tell the story of a student who turned personal challenge into lasting community impact. She is a community leader whose work spans public health, emergency medicine, education, environmental advocacy, and civic engagement. She transformed her recovery from an eating disorder into a mission to improve youth health education. She founded the Youth Eating Disorder Committee under the New Jersey American Academy of Pediatrics, where she shared her testimony and research with pediatricians, nurses, and school professionals across the state. Through this work, she helped bridge the gap between clinical knowledge and real patient experience, while also empowering adolescents in recovery by giving them a voice and a platform. Her commitment to service extends into emergency medicine, where she serves as an Emergency Medical Responder, completing extensive hours in patient care, training, and equipment inspections. As Co-President of her school’s EMS Club, she helped grow the program into one of the largest student organizations, coordinating CPR and Narcan training to ensure peers are prepared to act in life-threatening situations. Elizabeth is also deeply invested in education and mentorship. She has taught water safety as a head swim coach, guided children and families through environmental education as a Junior Docent at the Bergen County Zoo, and developed mental-health and wellness initiatives reaching hundreds of students. Through peer mentoring, library programming, and youth advisory roles, she consistently creates spaces where young people feel informed, supported, and empowered. Together, Elizabeth’s accomplishments reflect resilience, compassion, and an unwavering commitment to service—demonstrating how one student’s initiative can meaningfully strengthen an entire community.

CONGRATULATIONS Elizabeth!

Ashley Schwartz, a junior at Pascack Hills High School, is the proud recipient of the Five Star Student Award for May 2025. In 2023, Ashley founded and became president of the Make Our School Safe Club (MOSS). MOSS is the first student-led club in New Jersey focused solely on school safety. One of the group's first projects was a color-coded hallway system designed to assist first responders during emergencies. Ashley has worked closely with local law enforcement to launch initiatives like Bronco Buddies, a mentorship program for middle school students developed alongside the DARE/LEAD drug prevention programs to support incoming high school students and foster a stronger sense of community. Additionally, Ashley served as Junior Fire Chief with the Woodcliff Lake Volunteer Fire Department. She is a member of the Youth Advisory Board of NJ4S (New Jersey Statewide Student Support Services), where she advocates for initiatives that promote student mental health. In this role, she has successfully raised awareness and implemented impactful programs at her school. Through fundraising, grants, and donations, Ashley completed her recent project aimed at enhancing physical safety in the school, resulting in the installation of branded privacy film on the windows of the school cafeteria. Ashley is characterized as the kind of student who gives back. She is often recognized as a student who contributes to her community without needing to be asked.

CONGRATULATIONS Ashley!

Congratulations to Ezra Fineman, a sophomore at Fair Lawn High School on being selected as the December Five Star Student Award Winner. Ezra exemplifies extraordinary perseverance in overcoming challenges that he faced as a young child dealing with hyper IgM syndrome. Individuals with HIGM are susceptible to recurrent and severe infections. For the first five years of his life, Ezra lived in isolation. He endured 2 bone marrow transplants and several medical setbacks but is now a healthy teenager. He is actively engaged with various organizations. One is The Gift of Life Marrow Registry, where he was the Master of Ceremonies at their annual gala in New York City this past June. Ezra has been volunteering as an advocate for the NMDP (National Marrow Donor Program) for many years. He has met with Senator Cory Booker and Congressman Josh Gottheimer to advocate for a proposed act that will provide donors with job-protected leave and funding for NMDP. Ezra is also working with the Hyper IgM Foundation as an intern where he is developing a podcast series that highlights young patients with Hyper IgM Syndrome to support their efforts at finding a cure for this terrible disease. He interviews other kids and teenagers around the world to present their voices and perspectives. In addition, Ezra was the Freshman Class Council President and he is currently the Sophomore Class Council President and a member of the Student Government Association Executive Committee for Fair Lawn High School.

CONGRATULATIONS Ezra!

Our "My County" poster contest takes place every April during County Government Week. It's open to all 4th grade students throughout Bergen County. Details are sent to each school's Principal in February. For more information call (201) 336-7051.

The First, Second and Third Place winners, as well as Honorable Mentions, are selected by the contests sponsors, Bergen County's Constitutional Officers (County Clerk, Sheriff and Surrogate Court Judge). All twenty winners, along with their families and teachers, are invited to take part in Bergen County's annual "Law Day" Ceremony held in May at the Bergen County Justice Center (Courthouse).

And why not show your support for the winners? Send an email to request a calendar featuring the winning posters.