Holton Student Places In New York Times Student Essay Contest 

Rising sophomore Soa A. has been published in the New York Times’ 9th Annual Student Editorial Contest.

Soa’s entry, “Madagascar: The Country,” is one of 18 runners-up. Her essay joins 11 winners and 53 honorable mentions as the favorite essays of 16,664 the newspaper received this year. 

The contest calls for students to submit opinion pieces on any topic they like in 450 words or fewer. Entries range from concerns such as climate change, political dysfunction, dress codes and Internet culture, to offering solutions such as multigenerational living, the benefits of memes, and why Gen Z should consider farming as a career.

In her essay, Soa addresses the harm of the film “Madagascar” and the stereotypes it has perpetuated of the country and its people.

“I honestly can’t believe this is real," Soa says. "I hope my editorial’s publication gives a voice to the REAL Madagascar.”

In the editorial she writes writes: 

“I’m tired of hearing Americans mock my country and joke about ‘going to the middle of nowhere in Madagascar.’ Madagascar’s capital, Antananarivo, is filled with beauty; royal castles and brick homes line the green hillsides of the city. Madagascar hosts wildlife like no other; 90 percent of its wildlife cannot be found anywhere else in the world. Nothing compares to the looming baobab trees spread under the orange skies of Morondava, the aquamarine sea near the coves of Nosy Be, or the citrusy aroma of the blooming ylang ylang trees.”

Click here to read her full essay. Congratulations, Soa!