Jacob Mott

Constituting America is pleased to award Jacob Mott with a “Best Essay On Film Award”!

Jacob L. Mott is an 18 year old from Chester, New York, who attends Chester Academy as a senior. He’s interned for NY State Senator James Skoufis, Defense Attorney Benjamin Ostrer, and the Orange County (NY) Sheriff’s Office. He also founded a youth environmental organization called The GreenTeenMovement, was chosen to go to Boys State (NY), was briefly a journalist for his town’s local paper, and was recently a member on his town’s Police Reform Bill Committee. His involvement within school include Youth in Government, Mock Trial, and Key Club. He’s currently the head organizer of the 2021 “World Children’s Day Fundraiser Festival”, set to be held in Orange County, New York.

Jacob wishes to pursue a life in humanitarian work and public service, seeking to participate in AmeriCorps, join the Peace Corps after college, work with and/or the United Nations, and run for public office within the United States. Jacob also enjoys reading, podcasts, documentaries, travel, volunteering for places such as his local food bank, participating in community service projects, hosting and attending get-togethers with friends, spending time with family, hiking, campfires, spiritual activity, fireworks, and sharing a smile.

Watch Jacob’s winning essay here:

Our Interview With Jacob

Was this the first time you entered the contest?
Yes!

How did you hear about the contest?
Scholarships.com

What inspired your work?
What I know, and what I do not know; what I’ve experienced, and what I’ve been ignorant to; history, and progress; nature and the cosmos, with all the beauty and chaos which lay embedded within; and those who I love, as well as those who’ve been left behind.

What did you learn while creating your entry?
That after around 50 takes, I begin to become just a tad flustered…

How do you plan to spread the word this year to your peers about the importance of the U.S Constitution?
By self education, spreading its ideals through mind, word, and body, as well by achieving a higher level of humanity, so a deeper meaning is retained.

How do your friends respond to history or talking about the Constitution?
We respond at times with insightful thought and research, veracity, companionship and fellowship, and vision, while at other times we respond with visceral boost, passionate emphasis , and driven compassion; these attitudes and motives are nonetheless inseparable.

What do you love about U.S. History and the forming of our government?
History provides for a gateway – albeit at times a distorted one – into the realm of the past, and thus, human civilization and nature in all her glory and turmoil. By becoming better versed in this vast, bountiful, and complicated, field (if they so desire) can better understand what has and hasn’t worked before under particular circumstances, as well to become better equipped to give into self-surrender to the service of all which is worthy (again, if so desired).

Which U.S. historical site would you like to visit?
Most of Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Mount Rushmore, (and although they may not technically be perceived as “U.S. historical site”), the Puebloan cliff dwellings, and national parks.

Which American historical figure is most influential/inspirational to you?
I try to stay away from this question as well as the one immediately following, as I believe that for me, the danger of narrowing my accessibility to new ideas, people, and the like would prove detrimental to my personal duties.

Who is your greatest role model?
See above.

What in your life are you most passionate about?
My life’s mission, implied before, is self-surrender to what I see as right; that is, to human rights, democracy, a healthy planet (seeing as how we only have one), international cooperation, and economic prosperity.

How do you spend your free time?
Reading, podcasts, documentaries, travel, volunteer work, participating in community service projects, hosting and attending get-togethers with friends, spending time with family, hiking, campfires, spiritual activity, fireworks, and sharing a smile. Observing the wonderful quagmire which is life, it seems best to try and live three in one while time still allows.

What are your plans for the future?
-There is currently a date set to move on with the “World Children’s Day Fundraiser Festival” (which was postponed because of COVID-19) in which we will be holding an event at a local venue with live music, food trucks, contests, and other general activities in order to raise money which will to donated to UNICEF and Food Bank of the Hudson Valley 50/50.
-I’ll be spending roughly a month this summer with The Christian Appalachian Project in Kentucky in order to provide humanitarian services
Then I’ll be heading off to college to receive a degree (hopefully in three years instead of four) .
-From that point on it will be a mix of public service, elected office, and work with international organizations and NGOs.
-If everything up to this point has not been spoiled by unforeseen interruptions, I would like to own a ranch, travel, and continue to spread the aforementioned beliefs before my time is spent.

If you could do one super impactful thing to help people, what would it be?
By giving my entire life towards the causes mentioned before, only relinquishing if fate deems it a necessity.

Why is the Constitution relevant today?
While this has been covered much better by people much smarter and better suited than I, a brief statement which I feel qualified to provide is this: The Constitution has survived for over 240 years, and has allowed for our country and all whom reside within it to march on towards something greater (notice how that “greater” may mean different things to different people). To put it bluntly, it’s one of the (if not the best) governmental tools within our civic arsenal. How we use it from this point onwards, is up to us.