Student’s essay on tigers earns him $250 in contest

An Nguyen of Fountain Valley, a 16-year-old student at Mater Dei High School, was named the second place underclassman prize winner in the Humane Education Network’s “A Voice for Animals” high school essay contest.

An was awarded $250 for his paper, “The Truth Behind the White Tiger,” which examines the scientific inbreeding of white tigers.

Now in its 19th year, the essay contest encourages teens to examine either the potential mistreatment of one animal species or one cause of animal suffering anywhere in the world, and evaluate possible measures to remedy the issue.

About 1,800 students worldwide submitted essays in the 2009 competition.

— Candice Baker