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Thornton Wilder Writing Competition Winners
2025
1st place in Prose – Sean Figueroa, Hamden High School, grade 11 for Somber Prologue
2nd place in Prose – Natalia Todorovich, Hopkins School, grade 10 for HATOP
3rd place in Prose – Samir Iydroose, Hamden High School, grade 9 for The Unseen Mask
1st place in Poetry – Emma Imanov, Amity Regional High School, grade 10 for You Cannot Divide By Zero
2nd Place in Poetry – Quynh-Chau Nguyen, Westover School, grade 12 for Squatters
3rd place in Poetry – Michelle Etchie, Westover School, grade 11 for Dear Aburo
2024
1st place in Prose – Henrietta Hannah Geertz, ECA/Cross, grade 10 for How Arnold Fischman Found Out His Mom Is Gay
2nd place in Prose – Asher Joseph, Hopkins School, grade 11 for Dhadakan
3rd place in Prose – Evan Heath, Hamden Hall School, grade 12Â for The Lower Left of Nowhere
1st place in Poetry – Kendra Graf, Westover School, grade 11Â for carpe diem
2nd Place in Poetry – Sophia Andrews, ECA/Foran HS, grade 9Â for Hair Can Make a Girl Cry
3rd place in Poetry – Hannah Leamon, ECA/North Haven, grade 11Â for Warm Outline of Two Bodies on Otherwise Wet Concrete
2023Â
1st place in Prose – Mikael Caliandra, grade 10 West Haven HS for Midnight Garrison
2nd place in Prose – Sonjae Kim, grade 9 Hamden HS for Queen of the Meadow
3rd place in Prose – Charle Wortman, grade 12 Hamden Hall for Just Play Catch, Kid
1st place in Poetry – Theo Mays, grade 12 Westover School for The Marsh
2nd Place in Poetry – Evan Heath, grade 11 Hamden Hall for the lakes
3rd place in Poetry – Adeline Filardi, grade 11 Guilford HS for Those Kids
2022
1st place in Prose – Lily Goldblatt, Hamden High for  Thanksgiving
2nd place in Prose – Georgia Kirkendall, Hamden High for Pandemic Narrative
Honorable Mention in Prose –Â Yanmi Yu, Hamden Hall for Pigeons
1st place in Poetry – Eleanor Polak Wilbur, Cross/ECA for In the Infirmity
2nd Place in Poetry – Alexis Mays, Westover School for Landscapes
Honorable Mention in Poetry – Mea Scarpellino, Guilford High/ECA for Re-Gifted
2021
1st place in Prose – Christine Kim, Hamden High for Only a Sacrifice Will Do
2nd place in Prose – Eleanor Polak, ECA/Wilbur Cross HS for In These Our Salad Days
Honorable Mention in Prose – Alyssa Barile, ECA/North Branford HS for When the Sun Bursts
1st place in Poetry – Cindy Truong, ECA/Platt HS for Inheritance
2nd Place in Poetry –Â Katy Wolff, Westover School for Meadow Mine
Honorable Mention in Poetry – Gabrielle Wincherhern, Amity Regional HS for casualties of trees and seasons
2020Â
1st place in Prose – Sydney Cohen- Amity HS for Toy Soldiers
2nd place in Prose – Michael Lee- Hamden Hall for The Four Momentous Animal Tragedies- A David Attenborogh Narration
Honorable Mention in Prose – Cindy Truong- ECA/Platt for Fatz Cafe
1st place in Poetry – Franziska Lee- ECA/Hamden High for Confucius’ Failings in the Modern Age
2nd Place in Poetry –  Emily Benoit,- Westover School for it feels like flames
Honorable Mention in Poetry – Alyssa Greenwood ECA/ for Understanding Between Man and Bird-Man
2019 Â
1st place in Prose – Franziska Lee. ECA/Hamden High for “Recessional”
2nd Place in Prose – Â Eleanor M. Polak, Hopkins School for “Portrait of a Gentleman in the 21st Century”
Honorable Mention in Prose – Lily Goldblatt, Hamden High for “Just Another January Day”
1st place in Poetry –Â Juliane Purves, Westover School “cogito, ergo sum”
2nd place in Poetry – Jahleesa Thornhill, ECA for “Roots”
Honorable Mention in Poetry – Collette Lynch, Hamden High for “Natural Disasters”
2018
1st place in Prose –Â Elsie Stirling of Amity Regional High School for Hospitals are Cold
2nd place in Prose – Ava Hathaway Hacker of Choate Rosemary Hall for Merry Christmas
Honorable Mention in Prose – Franziska Lee of ECA/ Hamden High for Flotsam
1st place in Poetry – Molly Galusha of Westover School for Anything Worthwhile
2nd place in Poetry– Ava Hathaway Hacker of Choate Rosemary Hall for To SpringÂ
Honorable Mention in Poetry – Briana Wambolt of Sheehan High for Drive
2017
1st place in Prose – Kasey Dugan, ECA/Daniel Hand High School- “You Slip, You Die”
2nd place in Prose – Franziska Lee, ECA/Hamden High School- “The Mouse King”
Honorable Mention in Prose – Karlyn Jackson, Hamden High School- “How to Date a Vietnamese Boy”
1st place in Poetry – Daniel Kuriakose, ECA/Amity High School- “The World Unoccupied. Me Unqualified.”
2nd place in Poetry – Patricia Collins, Westover School- “Pretty Girl”
Honorable Mention in Poetry – Mia McClain, Westover School- “Disconnect”
2016
1st place in Prose – Julia Joy for “Sharks”
2nd place in Prose – Maeve Flaherty for “Lisa”
3rd place in Prose – Emmy Roday for “Bloodline”
1st place in Poetry – Clare Arlington Boyle for “On Losing Something I thought Kept Me Safe”
2nd place in Poetry– Jada Middleton for “Nothing is Truly Ever Black”
3rd place in Poetry – Shanshan Chen for “Prayer for a City Within a City”
2014
1st place in Prose – Nicole Anschutz of ECA/Amity Regional High School for “Cat Orphanage Room 241”
2nd place in Prose – Shana Blatt of ECA/Foran High School for “Frostbite”
1st place in Poetry – Annie Jonathan of Guilford High School for “To the Wife Waiting At Home For Her Astronaut”
2nd place in Poetry – Rhian Lewis of Westover School for “Atlantis”
2013
1st place in Prose – Adele Morgan Messner Gelperin of Hamden High School “The Wild Things”
2nd place in Prose – Jonathan Gelernter of ECA/Amity Regional High School for “The Yarmulke Kid”
1st place in Poetry – Christina Flynn of The Williams School for “Writer’s Block”
2nd place in Poetry – Xhesika Pasholli of The Williams School “House of Stairs”
2012
1st place in Prose – Jonathan Gelernter of ECA/Amity Regional High School for “Cold Turkey”
2nd place in Prose – Emerald Douglas of ECA/North Branford High School for “The Race Card”
1st place in Poetry – Sophia O’Brien-Udry of ECA/Wilbur Cross High School for “The Greats”
2nd place in Poetry – John Branch of ECA/Wilbur Cross High School for “My Father and I”
Honorable Mention in Poetry – Carolann Schack of Glastonbury High School for “The Cowboy”
2011
1st place in Prose – Lillian Sun for “West Nile Delirium”
2nd place in Prose – Dana Lew for “Electron Affinity”
Honorable Mention in Prose – Hannah Cole for “The Tunnel”
1st place in Poetry – Emma Broder for “Nkoaranga”
2nd place in Poetry – Anna Rose Picagli for “Poetic Justice”
2010
1st place in Prose – Charlotte Beach of ECA/Wilbur Cross High School for “Bingo War”
2nd place in Prose – Emma Broder of ECA/Hamden High School for “Vectors”
1st place in Poetry – Margaret Lincoln of ECA/North Haven High School for “Pillar of Salt”
2nd place in Poetry – Taylor Bickford of Williams School for “Crabbing”
2009
1st place in Prose – Tamanna Hossin of ECA/Wilbur Cross High School for “Migration”
2nd place in Prose – Miles Marguilies of ECA/Wilbur Cross High School for “The Brooklyn Fossil”
Honorable Mention in Prose – Charlotte Dylan of ECA/Wilbur Cross High School for “Grace Notes”
1st place in Poetry – Alex Nicoll of ECA/Cheshire High School for “The Deerfield River Fish”
2nd place in Poetry – Juante Iyanna Walters of James Hillhouse High School for “I’m From”
Honorable Mention in Poetry – Shaquana Cobbs of James Hillhouse High School for “Confused”
Honorable Mention in Poetry – Cleo O’Brien-Udry of ECA/Wilbur Cross High School for “On the Bombing of the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad”
2008
1st place in Prose – Annie Bass of ECA/Wilbur Cross High for “Plumber”
2nd place in Prose – Zachary Eran Newick of Hamden Hall, for “Stieglitz”
1st place in Poetry – Daphne Lew of ECA/Wilbur Cross High for “July Baby”
2nd place in Poetry -Katy Schneider of ECA/Daniel Hand High School for “Crescent Revelations in Marakesh”
2007
1st place in Prose – Anna Sussman of ECA/Hamden High School for “Susan and Don and the Taxi and the Lights of the City behind Them”
2nd place in Prose – Jared Gimbel of the Co-op High School in New Haven for “Academic Lunacy”
1st place in Poetry – Carlene Barnes of James Hillhouse High School for “It’s No News to Me”
2nd place in Poetry – Kara Gilpin Pellegrino of Hopkins School for “Remember When”