Deer Park High School sophomore Mohammad Fahad recently won second place in the Japan Center of Stony Brook University’s 17th annual Essay Competition. The aim of the JCSB essay contest is to provide students with the opportunity to think creatively and critically about their lives by relating them to some aspect of Japan – such as art, culture, tradition, values, philosophy, history, society, politics, business or technology – to help them broaden their horizons and develop global citizenship.
Fahad’s entry, “Cabinet of Porcelain,” juxtaposed the Imari style of Japanese porcelain with the life experiences of Fahad and his mother, an immigrant from Bangladesh.
“I'm really happy about letting my story be known,” Fahad said. “Many people may experience what I've experienced and come through in the end being better.”
“Not only evident but obvious right from our Personal Family Migration Story assignment in AP Human Geography, was Mohammad Fahad’s ability as a narrative writer,” teacher Michael Chin said. “Never before had I worked with a student who could manipulate semantics to his will to convey his story. Mo possesses the rare and unique ability to generate such emotion from his written words, and elicit genuine empathy through his prose, which allows his message to emanate into the hearts and souls of his readers. When presented with the opportunity to invite students to participate in the Japan Center Essay Contest, Mo jumped immediately to the forefront of our consideration. Clearly, he was able to inspire the judges in the same manner he inspires us daily.”
Date Added: 5/16/2022