2005 Humanist Essay Contest Winners

The Humanist Essay Contest is geared toward financially helping students advance in their studies. Prizes are awarded for originality of thought, sense of emotional engagement, clarity and quality of presentation, amount of research evidenced, and future potential shown by the author. The decision as to which essays are published, and in what venues, is based on the current editorial needs of the publications in question. A number of the essays listed below are being considered for future publication in the Humanist or elsewhere and the first place essay in each age category has been placed on the Humanist website.

We were gratified by the interest students showed in this contest. In what these young people have shared with us, we see hope for the future. So we extend our sincere thanks to all who entered, who inspired entrants, and who judged the essays.

The 2006 Humanist Essay Contest is now underway and accepting submissions until December 1, 2005. For complete information, visit the Humanist website at www.theHumanist.org, phone toll-free at 800.837.3792, or write to the Humanist Essay Contest, 1777 T Street NW, Washington, DC 20009-7125.

Ages Eighteen to Twenty-four

$1,000 First Prize * "The Human Genome Project: The International Project that Will Most Benefit Humanity" by Jennifer Gutierrez, age twenty-two (Click here to read the essay)

$400 Second Prize * "A Light in the Heart of Darkness" by Jemison Ukken, age twenty-two

$100 Third Prize * "The Synthesis of Individualism and Holism in Environmental Ethics" by Dan Parente, age eighteen

$50 Educator Prize * Robert McKim (Urbana-Champaign, Illinois)

Honorable Mention * "No More Games?" by Joshua Jay, age twenty-three; "The Humanistic Upbringing Behind European Youth Resistance to the Third Reich" by Adrienne Nicole Kitchen, age twenty-four; "Enlightened Love" by Austin Ong, Age eighteen; "Humanism and Law Enforcement" by Shannon M. Symons, age twenty-one.

Ages Thirteen to Seventeen

$1,000 First Prize * "The Pig on Your Plate: the Injustice of Factory Farming" by Jaime Chambers, age fifteen (Click here to read the essay)

$400 Second Prize * "A World of Opportunity" by Claire Reifsnyder, age seventeen

$100 Third Prize * "The Clockwork World" by Britta Redwood, age seventeen

$50 Educator Prize * Sara Bryant (Wilson, North Carolina)

Honorable Mention * "Acknowledging Unconventional Values in an Anxious and Provincial World" by Jarred David Gamwell, age seventeen; "A Return to Democracy" by Katherine Smith, age seventeen; "Who Will Save the Children?" by Rhett Stoyer, age fourteen; "Humanize Me: I Am Not My Father's Disease" by Lindsey Tommey, age seventeen.

Judges

Maggie Ardiente, Fred Edwords, Patrick Fisher, Karen Ann Gajewski, Rachel Gillett, Jende Huang, Anna Kaplan, and Anne Lyster.

© 2004, the American Humanist Association