Upper School Ethics Bowl Team Places Second in N.J. Competition

The Upper School Ethics Bowl team took part in the annual New Jersey competition on January 31 at Princeton University. And although the students made it to the final round for the ninth consecutive year, this time they finished in second place. 

Congratulations to Co-Captains Ava Builione ’26, Olivia Zhang ’26, and Madeline Mon ’26; teammates Claire Cherill ’26, Tara Khurana ’26, Supriya Kamilla ’26, Annabelle Chow ’26, Katie MacKay ’27, Priyana Manglani ’27, Ayushi Wadhwa ’27, Sarah Mattle ’28, Chelsea Chen ’28, Nicole Hoffman ’28, and Sophia Ivy ’29; and alternates Adaline Spencer ’28 and Krisana Manglani ’28. 

Kent Place brought two teams to the event, but because of a last-minute logistical issue on the part of the event organizers, one of the teams was not allowed to participate. 

Students competed on a variety of cases, among them the ethics of passion projects in college admissions, the ethics of withholding children from school for religious reasons, and ethical considerations of GLP-1 drugs. 

“There’s no sugar-coating the fact that our team was disappointed with our second-place finish,” said Karen Rezach, Director of the Ethics Institute and the team’s coach. “However, the resilience of our Kent Place Ethics Bowl team to shake off the jarring reality that half of our students wouldn’t have the opportunity to compete 10 minutes before the start of the first round speaks volumes about their character. We rallied together and supported those who participated and those who spectated. I was so proud of the team spirit and its unity.”

The students are looking forward to competing in the 2026 Harvard College High School Ethics Bowl, which takes place in March.