[中文版本]
The highly anticipated results of the Second Washington Chinese Culture Festival Youth Essay Contest were officially announced on November 18. In total, 16 students, including William Fu, Cynthia Zhang, Andrew Zhao, and Neil Xu, won first prizes across the Chinese, English, and Non-Chinese categories. Meanwhile, Victoria Wang, Coco Li, Jessica Yao, and three other students claimed the Online Popularity Awards. The full list of winners can be found in the appendix and is also available on the Zaidao website: http://thez.us.
This year’s contest stood out for its large number of submissions, high-quality entries, wide coverage, and enthusiastic participation by non-Chinese youth. Over 170 essays were received from the Greater Washington area and 10 other states including Arizona, California, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Illinois.
In addition to the enthusiastic participation of many Chinese American students, non-Chinese youth also actively contributed, expressing their deep interest and love for Chinese culture through their essays. Furthermore, Chinese students took on the challenge of writing in English, demonstrating their enthusiasm and ability for cross-cultural exchange.
The success of this contest was supported by Chinese schools and educational institutions. Students from various campuses of Hope Chinese School in the Greater Washington area (Potomac, Rockville, and Herndon), the Chinese School of the Chinese Americans, and Harvey Chinese School actively participated. The Arizona-based newspaper 《China Press》 mobilized several local Chinese schools to join. Washington International School also encouraged its students to submit essays, showcasing their passion for learning Chinese.
The entries covered a wide range of themes and topics, reflecting the participants' understanding and love for Chinese culture. Some students wrote about their experiences participating in the Chinese Culture Festival, vividly recounting their impressions and reflections. Others shared stories about traveling or engaging in cultural exchanges in China, demonstrating a deep appreciation for Chinese culture. Several essays started from everyday life, illustrating the role of cultural inheritance within families and communities. Many works also explored U.S.-China relations from the perspective of youth, offering unique insights and thoughtful observations.
Innovation in form and expression was a major highlight of this contest. Some essays conveyed traditional culture through family stories and ancestral experiences, while others explored the inheritance and development of Chinese culture in modern society. The Chinese and English entries complemented each other, not only showcasing the participants' profound understanding of Chinese culture but also reflecting their talents in language and creative expression.
To ensure fairness and integrity, all participants signed a declaration stating that their work was original and not generated by AI, plagiarized, or ghostwritten.
The judging panel consisted of authoritative experts, adding professionalism and credibility to the contest. The Chinese group was chaired by Jiange Chen, former director of the Washington office of 《China Press》 and a historian of Chinese diaspora. Other judges included Shanying Li from Hope Chinese School, Yingzhe Tao from Howard Chinese School, Hongwei Zhang from the the American Chinese School, and Shu Liu from Baltimore Chinese School. The English group was judged by veteran writing expert John Noran (周虎安), who has conducted writing workshops in over 350 schools and libraries across the U.S.
The Chinese Culture Festival is the largest and most influential cultural exchange event in the Chinese American community in the Greater Washington area, garnering attention and acclaim from American society. On August 31, the 21st Chinese Culture Festival was grandly held in Washington, D.C. The Youth Essay Contest, organized by the festival committee and hosted by the Zaidao website (TheZ.us), served as a platform for Chinese American youth to showcase their talents and encouraged them to express their understanding and love for Chinese culture through writing.
The contest not only enhanced the participants' sense of identity and belonging to Chinese culture but also promoted the inheritance and dissemination of Chinese cultural heritage.
The awards ceremony is scheduled to take place on the afternoon of December 7 in Maryland, where the winners will be recognized, and the Bo Le Awards and Excellence Organization Awards will also be presented. Further details will be announced later.
Special thanks to sponsors such as Universal Stones, New Light Sign Company, Richen Group, and Hibachi Seafood Buffet for their generous support of this contest.
Appendix: Second Washington Chinese Culture Festival Youth Essay Contest Winners
Chinese Category - Elementary School
First Place： Cynthia Zhang，William Fu (傅梓航)
Second Place：Alex Kejun Cao (曹可均)，Theodore Wang (王赋言)，Timo Lan (蓝天牧）
Third Place：Michael Yang （杨骐嘉），Andrew Yang （笑笑），Aaron Ruan（阮兰峻），Gabriel Wang（王宥实），Tei Patel（钱太之）
Honorable Mention: Shuyao Li（李舒窈），Franklin Wang（汪小洋），Adam Nie （聂亚当），Amelia Song（宋鲁宁），Alex S. Chen（陈世泽），Eli Fu（傅梓源），Gracie Ham（马驰椿），Michael Chen（陈小麦）, Murphy Tu （土豆）, Everly Jing（景云华）, Isabella Wu（伍雅薷）, Sophie H Zhang （张盈若）, CoCo Li（李师杨）
Chinese Category - Middle School
First Place：Andrew Zhao（赵博言), Neil Xu（徐启宁), Lexi Tang（邓乐晞), Aiden Xiao（肖云瀚)
Second Place：Ginny Liu （刘圆圆), Iwan chen（王梓辰), Kelly Dai（戴凯丽), Leah Li（李娅), Samanta He（贺琨藏), Kathleen Xin（辛雨薇)
Third Place：Kyle Zeng（曾祥天), Eric He（何昊洋), Selina Wang（王姝心), Allen Niu（牛啸天), Alice Zhao（赵嘉一), Alexander Gu（顾沛田), Emma Guo（郭鸿萱), Sophia Wu（伍雅萱), Nili Li（李小叶), Angela Wang（王昱茜), Eric Wang（王浩宇), Nora Ma（马丫然)
Honorable Mention: Ivan Chang（张博豪)，Keven Ye（叶开为)，Wellington Zhou（周忠轩)，Wenqing Ma（马文情)，Kevin Liu（刘必耀)，Kelly Wang（汪芊颖)，Rani Ziran wei（魏子然)，Ivy Xu（徐家蕙)，Bryce Long（龙道为)，Ava Lin（林莹)，Kevin chen（陈凯文)，Allen Ou（欧志国)，Annie Ou（欧爱妮)，Jinyuan Guan（关金源)，Ethan Chen（陈翼乐)，Benjamin Guo（过德浩)，Andrew Cai（蔡思恩), Emily Liu（刘星玥)，Henry Jiang（江季达)，Nathaniel Ni（倪浩轩)，Chloe Deng（邓朵朵)，Angelina Chen（陈欣凌)，Bella Lee（李贝拉)，Jason Xiao（肖泊辰)，Jacob（冯新民)，Daniel Cao（曹兮)，Emily.Qiu（邱重垣)，Chloey Fang（方欣扬)，James Fang（方毅成)
Chinese Category - High School
First Place： Nathan Tian(田旻楷)， Annie Yang(杨晓玥)
Second Place：Gracelyn Chen (陈蕙心)， Claire Qi（齐乐乐）， Aaron Tianyi Zhang（张天诣）
Third Place：Bruce Liu(刘琪煜）， Victoria Wang(王睿真），Crystal C hen(陈子元），Hannah Liu(刘润宇），Jessica Yao(姚嘉璐）， Julia Pitt(强竹涵）
Honorable Mention：Alex Dai(戴宇文）， Aiden Wang(王天笑）， Steven Xu(徐家澍）， Joyce Fang(方心）， Zai Ye(叶子濛）， Jaylina Shi(施雨彤）， Bernice Gao(高艺菲）， Jackie Zhu(朱家祺）， Sophie Zhu-Yun Pitt(强竹韵）， AnnieWang (王欣昕）， Kelin Du (杜科霖）， Venita wang(王诗礼）， Anthony Zhuang， Beckett Murphy(马千令），Elle Murphy(马心梅）， Benji Kurtzig(吴恩杰）
Chinese Category - Non-Chinese Descendant
First Place：Helena Hill(琳娜）
Second Place：Alex Suh(住彬）
Third Place： Rai Goswami(艾玛）, Haze Warren(王真）
Honorable Mention：Anton Jordan(安东）, Sofia Vakis(王淑菲）, Lena Schwartzman (蓝娜）, Liam McCuaig(马和奇）
English Category - Elementary School
First Place：Gloria Teng(滕楚萌)
Second Place：Aimee Chen(陈婧怡)
Third Place：Jason Fan(范陆安)
Honorable Mention：Sophie Shuyan Chen, Mollie Hu(胡墨莉), CoCo Li(李师杨), Sophie H Zhang (张盈若)
English Category - Middle School
First Place：Larissa Deng(邓睿莎), Emma Guo(郭鸿萱)
Second Place：Alex Huang(黄四之), George Hong(洪浩淋)
Third Place： Ivy Wang(王一辰), Sherry Wei(魏西雅), Paloma Naftulin, Peter Guo(郭靖)
Honorable Mention：Alice Zhao(赵嘉一), Kelly Wang(汪芊颖), Summer Lu(卢好), Aaron Wu(武子舟), Melodie Li(李伊一), Jasper Song(宋玉), Hannah Liu(刘子悠), Joseph Xu, Callum Seay-Lee, Neil Xu(徐启宁), Chloey Fang(方欣扬)
English Category - High School
First Place：Gloria Liu(刘蒜苗)
Second Place：Mark Li(李润麒)
Third Place：Daisy Jin(金樂彤)
Honorable Mention：Wenqing Ma(马文情), Joyce Fang(方心), Tansy Yu(余丹婵), Sophia Li, Alissia Dupriez(汪丽霞)
English Category - Chinese Students
First Place：Ziming Zhai(翟梓铭)
Second Place：Lucarlevia(刘玥彤)
Third Place：Ziyu Zhu(朱子钰)
English Category - Non-Chinese Descendant - Middle School
First Place：Isabella Tamayo (伊萨贝拉)
Second Place：Sana Baig (贝莎娜)
Third Place：Carah Cerutti (苏静怡)， Alan Mateo-Berganza Echebarria (蒙艾伦)
Honorable Mention：Mia Taylor(米小雪)， Charlotte Warren(王佳琪)， Ian Rivera(炎泽泰)， Stella Batteh， Jack Beardow(毕杰克）， Zahra Halakhe(何雅薇）
English Category - Non-Chinese Descendant - High School
First Place：Sheridan Henneberg(何喜丹）
Second Place：Ali Campbell(乔安莉）
Third Place：George Demekas-Ruiz(戴朝智）, Kiera Kumar(柯可娜）
Honorable Mention：Julia Cerutti(苏莉雅）, Abigail Dauchy， Thomas Adler(安天睦）， Alexandre Mousset， Cécile Nelles(艾西西）
Popularity Award：
Victoria Wang(王睿真)， CoCo Li(李师杨)， Jessica Yao(姚嘉璐)， Gloria Teng(滕楚萌)， Julia Pitt(强竹涵)，Samanta He(贺琨藏)
