Two Deer Park High school students, Lucas Di Vanna and Aubriella Nunez, were recently named finalists in the New York Times Learning Network’s second annual Open Letter Contest. This year’s prompt asked students, “If you were to write a letter to someone asking for change, who would you write to? What would you say?”

The contest drew 9,946 entries from teenagers around the world. From that field, The New York Times selected 10 winners, 13 runners-up, 40 honorable mentions and 139 additional finalists.

Di Vanna was named a runner-up for his letter, “Our Island Has a Heartbeat – Don’t Silence It,” while Nunez was selected as an additional finalist for her piece, “Chocolate, Sweet, Sweet Chocolate!” Both students were advised and supported throughout the submission process by teacher Teresa Greco.

Date Added: 1/30/2026