I've can't even comprehend anyone who can say that a middle school student has to kiss butt to get an award.

This is MIDDLE school! They're little kids! Not even young adults! Awards have always been a big deal for me. I have never kissed butt to get one, in fact I worked really hard, and I've never been the straight-A, smart, hard-working, sophisiticated 13 year old. I was that weird suicidal kid nobody liked that spent her lunch crying, sitting in the teacher's room, or having lunch with the mentally impaired kids (who were the only group of kids in school who accepted me and treated me with kindness, and they were so sweet.)

I believe those fluff awards are for those kids who truly need recognition. Not everyone can be a straight-A student, but there is always a kid who may not be the best at everything but be the best for what they feel passionate for. The Young Writer's award was a big deal for me. I was the best writer in the whole school, it was my passion, and it may be a fluff award, but it was everything for me and it challenged me to pursue my passion even when I had crappy grades and didn't pay much attention in class. Some people thrive on history or science and it may be their passion, so who are you to judge that those fluff awards may be what keeps them in school?