Tea Drinkers and Deep Thinkers Unite in Round 1 of Wharton Global Youth’s 2024 Comment and Win Contest
Our eyes are tired and our hearts are full!
Round 1 2024 commenters hit the ground running, punning, and stunning, dropping nearly 180 unique comments on Wharton Global Youth articles from June 10 to June 21.
This was our biggest Comment and Win round EVAH! Thus, making the EVAL that much more challenging.
We were so impressed by high school students’ thoughtfulness, reflection and introspection – and most importantly, your devotion to all things business. While they were spread across more than 55 different articles, the comments flowed most robustly on content exploring a startup tea brand and innovations in GenAI – a testament to the broad scope of interests from this summer’s fierce commenters.
Let’s linger a minute on those two topics.
We were steeped in the celebration of tea culture – learning from Nicole N. about fairness pitchers “to ensure an even distribution of strength and flavor among cups,” as well as the allure of sweet milk tea in China and a favorite Molly Tea brand, which Yujing S. is lucky enough to buy in New York City’s Chinatown. And so much love for our podcast tea entrepreneur, Victoria Gao, from commenters like Michelle Y. (“Victoria’s journey has become one of my favorite entrepreneur stories.”) and Siqi H., who writes Victoria a thank you note.
Compare inspiration from the remote mountains of Yunnan, China, with your endless curiosity around today’s high-tech artificial intelligence revolution. The wonders of business education! A favorite thought from Jason D.: “The emergence of AI will introduce an impenetrable influence of vexation or harmony on people.” (Hey Jason, we noticed perspicacity…were you researching past SAT-word superlatives?) Everyone’s deep and provocative perspectives on AI are so well-placed, underscored by the new Wharton AI & Analytics Initiative.
We appreciated your digital DNA in every comment and emerged from our evaluations with a better understanding of high school students’ hearts and minds – and a whole lot of other worldly trends and issues. Some memorable moments from Round 1: Grant M.’s meme stock cautionary tale; Kelly Z.’s Anasi Farmers in Uganda; Yangtianyu H.’s exploration of teleology around the expression of anger; Jake P.’s Korean Gen MZ allusion; and Aiden J.’s point about the term delve in medical studies while he reflected on GenAI. We encourage everyone to “delve” into these rich commenting threads! We also love when commenters discover meaning in past evergreen content – we’re looking at you, Jackson R.
Like we said – your quality commenting led to analysis paralysis. Must. Choose. Winners. And so, we did!
The Winners Revealed
Congratulations to Ina N., 16 and a student at Lower Cape May Regional High School in New Jersey, U.S., the Top Commenter in Round 1, 2024! Ina’s comment on Wharton Global Youth’s podcast about a 12.5-million tech startup, was a beautiful reflection on the power of AI and youth entrepreneurship. While she won for just one comment, Ina was among the most prolific Round 1 commenters, revealing pieces of herself, like her Bulgarian heritage, in memorable reflections across the platform. She cross-referenced other Global Youth articles in several comments, drawing poetic parallels. We felt the love!
Our First Runner-up in Round 1 is Beatriz R., 17 and a student at Colégio Arena in Brazil. Beatriz’s comment provided a compelling and concise perspective on the changing workplace and added value – without excess — to the discussion around emerging employment trends.
Congratulations to Second Runner-up, Hayoon C., 16 and a student at American High School in California, U.S. Hayoon’s comment on an article about the massive college admissions cheating scandal a few years back, was direct, honest, clear and thought-provoking, addressing “societal expectations of success.”
The Round 1 Third Runner-up is Matthew T., 16 and a student at Western Canada High School in Calgary, Canada. Matthew’s comment in response to the story of Victoria Gao’s budding tea brand was perhaps one of the shortest of the round, and yet it hit just the right tone of reflection and scrutiny. Often, the strength of a comment is in its sincere simplicity.
Of course, it wouldn’t be the Comment and Win contest without notable strong and long reflections. Jayden W., 17 and a student at Stuyvesant High School in New York, U.S., is this round’s Fourth Runner-up. Jayden gave us a lot to think about in his well-expressed comment about the extent to which AI should be integrated into creative processes.
And finally, congratulations to our Fifth Runner-up, Perneet K., 15 and a student at Arnold O. Beckman High School in California, U.S. In a sea of dense and descriptive comments, Perneet took a risk, presenting her reflection on Professor Adam Grant’s discussion of “potential” in the form of a poem. It was a breath of fresh commenting for our evaluators – and a Comment and Win first.
Great job, Round 1 Top Commenters! Thanks to our collaboration with the Wharton School Press, you will all receive your choice of e-book, written by Wharton School faculty.
And because so many of your comments were noteworthy, our Comment & Win Superlatives are back this year, honoring quality commenters related to specific themes. In no particular order, here are this round’s superlative winners:
Cleverest Use of Humor in a Comment: Caleb P. from Mukego High School in Wisconsin, U.S., for his comment on Murder Mysteries, Mock Interviews, and the GenAI Revolution: “I do not believe that GenAI is the butler of this story. It did not, in fact, kill writers everywhere with a candlestick in the billiards room.”
Greatest Business Education Awakening: Isabella P. from American High School in Bogota, Colombia, for her curiosity about Environmental, Social & Governance factors reflected in her comment on Your Future as an ESG Pioneer and her comment on How Do We Make ESG Sustainable?
Reflection with the Chillest Vibe: Neil S. from Neuqua Valley High School in Illinois, U.S., for his comment on Sneakers, $50 Keychains, and Lessons Learned from the Reselling Business.
Most Likely to Lose Sleep Contemplating Immigration and Trade: Sagar R. from North Allegheny Senior High School in Pennsylvania, U.S., for his comment on Lessons in Globalization and International Trade.
Best Cultural Insight: Jeongin K. from École Jeannine Manuel Lille in Marcq-en-Barœul, France, for her comment on A Student’s Struggle to Speak English Leads to a Career as a Communicator: “Because I was born and raised in a country (South Korea) where sacrificing the present to get the best future is normalized, I have been prioritizing the future over the present without even noticing.”
Boldest Counterpoint: David H. from Bronx High School of Science in New York, U.S., for his comment on Wharton Research Adds to the Evolving Brand Story.
Strongest Solution-driven Standpoint: Jewoo S. from Valor International Scholars in the Republic of Korea, for his comment on Business, Plastic Pollution and the Circular Economy.
Drawing the Most Playful Parallel: Baokang Z. from Redmond High School in Washington, U.S., for their comment on A Tool for Student Loans and Advice for Your Financial Future.
Shrewdest Detector of the Missing Perspective: Sanjay G. from Mallya Aditi International School in Bangalore, India, for his comment on Wharton Research Adds to the Evolving Brand Story and his comment on Three Issues at the Intersection of Business and Ethics.
Least Likely to Serve Another Turkey and Cheese on Wheat: Palloma D. from Memorial High School in Texas, U.S., for her comment on Rice, Beans and Saffron: Fighting Hunger While Celebrating Community Diversity.
Deepest Gratitude: Miloslav D. from Biskupské gymnázium Hradec Králové, The Czech Republic, for his comment on The Wharton Investment Competition Sparks a Passion for Finance.
Best Expression of Genuine Optimism: Brian C. from Stuyvesant High School in New York, U.S., for his comment on Your Future Workplace: Intergenerational Offices, Neurodivergent Employees, and Four-day Work Weeks.
That’s a wrap on the winners of Round 1! Don’t forget to submit your Round 2 “Personal Connection” comments by 11:59 p.m. on July 5, 2024. You can always visit our Global Youth Comment and Win page for details.
Remember, commenting is a chance for you to not just deliver an academic overview of what you’ve read and detail the main points, but to also share opinions and attitudes that draw parallels to your work and life.
See you in the comments!