Big Dreams Win Second-Grader $300 For College

Each year, children are encouraged to enter the Connecticut Higher Education Trust’s (CHET) Dream Big competition, where kindergarten through third-grade  students are told to draw a picture of what they want to do when they grow up.

For second-grader Ann Seltzer, it was an easy choice. She drew a picture of herself as a kindergarten teacher, a job she knows she wants.

“That’s what I want to do,” said Seltzer, who is 7-years-old. “I like working with the younger kids.”

The CHET judges must have felt Seltzer’s resoluteness, as they named her the winner for her bracket, second-grade girls from New London County. As part of the prize, she received a $300 college savings account.

“I was excited,” said Seltzer, describing her reaction when she first heard she won. “It felt good.”

Seltzer went to an award ceremony on Monday in Hartford, and will be honored by the Waterford Board of Education next week. The middle child of three children, Seltzer said she likes playing softball and math, and starred as both Rapunzel and Cinderella in the school play.