01/11/2022
At the 187th Yukichi Fukuzawa Birthday Commemoration Ceremony held on Monday, January 10, the awards ceremony for the 46th Shinzo Koizumi Prize National High School Essay Contest was held, and certificates were presented to the winners by Keio University President Kohei Ito (Karin Takeshima was absent due to prior commitments). Following this, on behalf of the screening committee, committee member Hiroshi Hayakawa, President and CEO of Hayakawa Publishing Corporation, offered his comments on the winning essays. After the ceremony, the customary get-together was held for the winners, screening committee members, and other related parties. To prevent the spread of COVID-19, all participants wore masks and maintained social distance during the gathering, but it was a valuable opportunity for the screening committee members and the winners to interact directly, discussing topics such as what the students want to study at university and what motivated them to write their essays.
Keio University, in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the death of Dr. Shinzo Koizumi, a distinguished writer who served as President of Keio University from 1933 to 1947, has been holding an essay contest for high school students nationwide since 1976. The purpose of the contest is to pass on Dr. Koizumi's character and achievements to future generations and to contribute to the improvement of young people's writing and expressive abilities. This year, five essay topics were set, including "In the Midst of a Pandemic," and submissions were accepted from May to August of last year, with 304 outstanding works received from high school students across the country.
The winners are as follows:
The winning essays and the screening committee's comments are published in the January 2022 issue of "Mita-hyoron (official monthly journal published by Keio University Press)".
They are also scheduled to be posted on the Keio University website at a later date.
"Shinzo Koizumi Prize"
・Ruri Hirano (Aichi Prefecture / Seirei High School, 2nd year)
"Second Prize"
・Mana Asaka Fukui (Chiba Prefecture / Ichikawa High School, 1st year)
"Honorable Mention" (in alphabetical order)
・Moeka Kato (Aichi Prefecture / Seirei High School, 2nd year)
・Daiki Sasaki (Tokyo / Gakushuin Boys' Senior High School, 3rd year)
・Karin Takeshima (Shizuoka Prefecture / Shizuoka Prefectural Shizuoka Higashi High School, 3rd year)
Shinzo Koizumi Prize National High School Essay Contest Results
Photo by Takeshi Kishi