Last week, The New York Times announced that rising junior Nicole Tian is one of 12 nationwide winners in its seventh annual Student Editorial Contest. Tian’s piece, titled “This Land Was Made for You and Me,” discusses anti-Asian American sentiment during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the expectations placed on Asian Americans in order for them to be considered fully American. 

The contest tasked students with writing a persuasive essay using both The New York Times and other sources. Winning essays were published in the Times’ Learning Network. The contest received more than 7,000 submissions from middle and high school students.