UConn’s Neag School of Education, Department of English, and Connecticut Writing Project (CWP), co-sponsors of the 33rd annual Letters About Literature contest, are proud to announce Connecticut’s winners for the 2025-26 academic year.
Each year, students in grades four through 12 are invited to read a text, broadly defined, and write a letter to the author (living or dead) about how the text personally affected them. Submissions are grouped according to grade level (grades four to six; grades seven and eight; and grades nine to 12).
All submissions were read and scored by Neag School alumni volunteers and teachers affiliated with CWP. Of the 807 submissions from Connecticut students this year, 74 were recognized as semifinalists.
A second set of judges, many of whom were pre-service teachers, then read and scored the semifinalists — twice for each submission — and selected a total of nine winners, three per grade level. Each of the nine winners will receive a $100 gift card and will be invited to a recognition ceremony next month.
Neag School associate professor Doug Kaufman and Department of English visiting assistant professor and CWP director Danielle Pieratti served as the contest’s representatives for the state of Connecticut. Department of English graduate assistants Emmanuel Fasipe and Ruben Paredes, along with undergraduate interns Aidan Srb, Erika Echegoyen, and Abigail Fortenbach, provided administrative support for the contest.
Letters About Literature Finalists for the State of Connecticut
The following are the contest winners, listed with their respective schools, as well as the work of literature that is the focus of their essays.
Level 1 (Grades 4-6)
- Mary Fournier, King Philip Middle School (West Hartford), “Gregor the Overlander” by Suzanne Collins
- Ayomide Olufewo, Church Street Elementary School (Hamden), “Sulwe” by Lupita Nyong’o
- Finley Timme, Bugbee Elementary School (West Hartford), “Awesomely Austen” Series by Jane Austen
Level 2 (Grades 7-8)
- Elizabeth Kanev, Strawberry Hill IB School (Stamford), “The Only One Club” by Jane Naliboff
- Raifa Khan, Mansfield Middle School (Storrs, Mansfield), “Fearful” by Lauren Roberts
- Kaveri Pathak, Saxe Middle School (New Canaan), “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak
Level 3 (Grades 9-12)
- Sandhya Narasimha, Ridgefield High School (Ridgefield), “Normal People” by Sally Rooney
- Anna Stiebel, Lewis S. Mills High School (Burlington), “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain
- Millyhon Stoney, Arts at the Capitol Theater (Willimantic), “Hijab Butch Blues” by Lamya H
Letters About Literature Contest Judges
Alumni, students, and friends of the Neag School of Education and the CWP judged the Letters About Literature contest submissions earlier this year. The judges selected semifinalists at each of the three competition levels. Thank you to the first-round judges:
- Kelly Andrews-Babcock
- Miranda Argyros
- Jane Cook
- Shirley Cowles
- Erika Echegoyen
- Emmanuel Fasipe
- Kaitlyn Ferrara
- Abigail Fortenbach
- Lindsay Larsen
- Thomas Long
- Margaret McFarlane
- Gina Morris
- Ruben Paredes
- Colin Schlank
- Alexandra Shagoury
- Aidan Srb
- Marc Zimmerman
Thank you also to the semifinal-round judges:
- Meagan Ash
- Artem Bogatikov
- Carolina Burcio
- Katelyn Cifaldi
- Adele Datz
- Lillian Lafemina
- Evelyn Lavertue
- Riley Marquis
- Ky’Lynn Monts
- Ashley Rysz
- Sarah Schnatz
- Brendon Stevens
- Moira Thidemann
- Melody Vong
- Grace Wright-Goodison
