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Posted December 29th, 2008 by admin

Art & Writing Awards

AT–A–GLANCE
What is it?

Founded in 1923, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards is the nation's longest-running, most prestigious educational initiative supporting student achievement in the visual and literary arts.  The program has an impressive legacy of being the first to acknowledge creative talent and is today's largest source of scholarships for creative teens.

Who's it for?

Creative teenagers in grades 7–12 from public, private and home schools throughout the U.S. and its territories, as well as American-run schools abroad and students who make art and writing through community organizations.

Visit the Website

artandwriting.org

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More Information

Anne Sparkman
asparkman@scholastic.com
(212) 343-6657

Brittany Sullivan
bsullivan@scholastic.com
(212) 343-4848

 

Art & Writing In The News

THE TAKEAWAY Portfolio Gold Medalists Luisa Banchoff, 17, of Arlington, VA and Greg Dugdale, 18, of Carmel, IN, speak about their Award-winning poetry and fashion designs, respectively. "Sometimes the everyday and the mundane is the best material for a good poem," says Luisa.

NPR Amid dropping test scores, teen writers' creativity soars.15-year-old Eva Shapiro and her father, an NPR correspondent, reflect on the 2013 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, in which Eva was recognized as one of the "Best In Grade."

SLATE High school seniors Anthony DeSantis, 17, of Greenville, SC and Isabella Giovannini, 18, of New York City, each received a Portfolio Gold Medal and $10,000 scholarship for their writing. Here are excerpts of their work. 

KSTP (ABC - Minneapolis/St. Paul) Gold Medal winner Harrison Heinks was diagnosed with autism when he was two years old; the 8th grader now uses art to represent his feelings.

EDUCATION WEEK A White House committee appoints the inaurgal class of National Student Poets; these five teen literary ambassadors will use their talent and energy to inspire and encourage their peers.

Winning a Scholastic Art & Writing Award brought me from high school in Wichita, Kansas, to art school in New York City. It changed the course of my life.

—— Tom Otterness, acclaimed American sculptor, public artist and Awards alumnus

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Press Releases

 

Highlights

What is the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards?

  • The Awards recognizes student achievement in the visual and literary arts in 28 categories, including poetry, graphic design, fashion, science fiction, video game design and more.
  • Since 1923, the Awards has recognized and encouraged millions of students, including Truman Capote, Philip Pearlstein, Sylvia Plath, Andy Warhol, John Updike and Stephen King who won when they were teens.  In more recent years, famous names such as Myla Goldberg, Paul Chan, Zac Posen, Lena Dunham and Erik Madigan Heck have become alumni of the program.
  • An Award signifies to parents, teachers, the community and colleges that a student is an accomplished artist or writer.
  • The Awards offers opportunities for creative teens to earn recognition, exhibition, publication and scholarships.
  • Each year, 15 recipients receive the Portfolio Gold Award, which includes a $10,000 scholarship. In the 2013–14 program year, there is a special 16th Portfolio Gold Award, thanks to the generosity of donors during the program’s 90th anniversary celebrations.
  • Through the Scholarship Provider Network, graduating seniors who earn a National Medal are eligible for an additional $8 million in college scholarships at more than 60 schools, institutions, and universities.
  • Additional cash awards are offered to students in all grades, as well as teachers.
  • More than 100 Regional Affiliates throughout the country run the Awards in their local communities and areas of operation.
  • 30,000 teen artists and writers are recognized in their regions each year.  Over the past six years alone, there have been more than one million submissions and more than $30 million has been made available in scholarships and awards for winning students.
  • Each work of art and writing is blindly adjudicated, first locally through the more than 100 affiliates of the Alliance, and then nationally by panels of judges comprised of renowned artists, authors, educators and industry experts.
  • Works are judged on originality, technical skill, and emergence of personal vision or voice.

 

What is The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers?

  • The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers is the national nonprofit organization that presents the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards and provides additional opportunities for creative teens to be recognized for their talents and to earn scholarships for their education.
  • The Alliance’s mission is to identify teenagers with exceptional artistic and literary talent and bring their remarkable work to a national audience.
  • The Alliance also serves as source of information for organizations and individuals who wish to support the creative development of our nation’s teenagers.
  • With the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities and the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the Alliance is a founding partner of the National Student Poets Program, the country’s highest honor for young poets which is open exclusively to winners of national Scholastic Awards in poetry. Five students are selected annually.
  • The Alliance is grateful for its generous sponsors, who provide funds to support and produce the Awards: Scholastic Inc., the Maurice R. Robinson Fund, Command Web Offset Co., the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, The New York Times, The National Endowment for the Arts, Blick Art Materials & Utrecht Art Supplies, The Gedenk Movement, 3D Systems, Golden Artist Colors, Bloomberg LP, Amazon.com, the Bernstein Family Foundation, ShurTech Duck Tape®, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and additional contributions from numerous other individual, foundation and corporate funders.

What is the National Student Poets Program?

  • The National Student Poets Program is a signature initiative of the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the nonprofit Alliance for Young Artists & Writers. It is the nation’s highest honor for young poets presenting original work.
  • This partnership reflects the national imprimatur of the President's Committee and its Honorary Chairman, First Lady Michelle Obama, as well as the Administration's commitment to the arts and humanities education. The Institute of Museum and Library Services' community-based network of libraries and museums links the National Student Poets with audiences and resources in their communities and surrounding regions. The program builds upon the Alliance's longstanding work with educators and creative teens through the prestigious Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.
  • Now in its second year, the Program selects five outstanding high school poets whose work exhibits exceptional creativity, dedication to craft, and promise for a year of service as national poetry ambassadors. Each National Student Poet represents a different part of the country and has his or her own unique style and interest when it comes to poetry.
  • The Poets' year of service starts at the Library of Congress' National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. During the course of their ambassadorial year, each National Student Poet will create and implement a service project that will expand the reach of the program and its engagement with audiences in each region.
  • The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards is the exclusive pathway to be considered for the National Student Poets Program. Students must achieve a National Gold or Silver Medal in poetry through blind adjudication by a national panel of jurors. From the top-winning work in the Scholastic Awards, an esteemed panel of expert judges selects five student poets, based on the student’s creativity, promise and dedication to craft.
  • Students grades 9–11 interested in becoming a 2014 National Student Poet can submit their entries now throughout the fall. National Medals will be announced in the spring of 2014, beginning the process of selecting the third class of National Student Poets.
  • Information on the Program, students and upcoming events can be found at www.artandwriting.org/NSPP

 

The 2013 National Student Poets

Sojourner Ahebee
Age – 17
Interlochen Arts Academy
Interlochen, MI
Midwest Region
Michaela Coplen
Age – 17
Carlisle High School
Carlisle, PA
Northeast Region
Nathan Cummings
Age – 18
Mercer Island High School
Mercer Island, WA
West Region
Aline Dolinh
Age – 15
Oakton High School
Vienna, VA
Southeast Region
Louis Lafair
Age – 18
St. Stephen’s Episcopal School
Austin, TX
Southwest Region

 

Photos from the National Student Poet Appointment Weekend in Washington, D.C.

First Lady Michelle Obama with the 2013 National Student Poets (from left: Michaela Coplen; Sojourner Ahebee, Nathan Cummings, Louis Lafair, and Aline Dolinh) in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, Sept. 20, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson). This official White House photograph is being made available only for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photograph. The photograph may not be manipulated in any way and may not be used in commercial or political materials, advertisements, emails, products, promotions that in any way suggests approval or endorsement of the President, the First Family, or the White House.
 

Downloadable Photos: (right click on a photo and click 'save as' to download a hi-res version)

 

National Student Poet Sojourner Ahebee reading her original poem at the National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. Photo by Tony Brown.

  

National Student Poet Michaela Coplen reading her original poem at the National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. Photo by Tony Brown.

 

 

National Student Poet Nathan Cummings reading his original poem at the National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. Photo by Tony Brown.

National Student Poet Aline Dolinh reading her original poemat the National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. Photo by Tony Brown.

  

National Student Poet Louis Lafair reading his original poem at the National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. Photo by Tony Brown.

  

The 2013 National Student Poets. From Left to Right: Aline Dolinh, Sojourner Ahebee, Louis Lafair, Nathan Cummings, Michaela Coplen. Photo by Tony Brown.

 

 

Art.Write.Now.Tour 2013–14

Art.Write.Now., a traveling exhibition of select Scholastic Art & Writing Award–winning works, highlights some of the most stunning examples of teen-produced art and writing in the nation.

Upcoming Cities

  • Savannah College of Art and Design, Savannah, GA: September 6 – October 2, 2013
  • National Hispanic Cultural Center, Albuquerque, NM: November 15 – December 16, 2013
  • Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh, PA: February 5 – March 2, 2014
  • Laramie Public Library, Laramie WY: April 12 – May 15, 2014

Past Cities

  • National Exhibition at Parsons The New School for Design and the Pratt Manhattan Gallery, New York, NY: June 1 – June 15, 2013
  • Fort Worth Library, Fort Worth, TX: March 7 – April 27, 2013
  • College for Creative Studies, Detroit, MI: September 29 – November 3, 2012
  • Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art, Virginia Beach, VA: November 16 – December 30, 2012
  • Leedy-Voulkos Art Center, Kansas City, MO: January 24 – February 22, 2013
  • National Exhibition at Parsons The New School for Design, New York, NY: June 2 – June 16, 2012
  • New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, New Orleans, LA: March 29 – April 27, 2012
  • National Constitution Center, Philadelphia, PA: February 16 – March 14, 2012
  • Pacific Northwest College of Art, Portland, OR: January 4 – January 27, 2012
  • Chicago Urban Art Society, Chicago, IL: November 20 – December 16, 2011

To get high-res images from the Art.Write.Now. traveling exhibition, click here.

 

 

 

The 2013 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
Photo and Video Downloads

(right click on a photo and click 'save as' to download a hi-res version)

Photos


Actress and arts advocate Sarah Jessica Parker
delivered the keynote address to almost 1,000
high school students and their families at the
national ceremony for the Scholastic Art & Writing
Awards, New York City, May 31, 2013.
 

Fashion designer Zac Posen, actress and arts advocate
Sarah Jessica Parker, and entertainer Usher backstage
at Carnegie Hall in New York City for the Scholastic
Art & Writing Awards, May 31, 2013.
 

Entertainer Usher talks backstage with the Portfolio Gold Medalists at the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards at Carnegie Hall in New York City, May 31, 2013.
 

Portfolio Gold Medalist Luisa Banchoff reacts to meeting
actress and arts advocate Sarah Jessica Parker, while
Olivia Morgan of the President's Committee on the Arts
and the Humanities looks on, at the Scholastic Art &
Writing Awards in New York City, May 31, 2013.
 

"Girls" star Adam Driver at the Scholastic Art &
Writing Awards' 90th Anniversary Benefit at the
Edison Ballroom, New York City, May 31, 2013.
 

 
"Girls" star Adam Driver performed a spoken word piece on stage at the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards' 90th Anniversary Benefit at the Edison Ballroom, New York City, May 31, 2013.
 

Fashion designer Zac Posen presented the inaugural Posen Design Award to high school senior Greg Dugdale at the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards' 90th Anniversary Benefit at the Edison Ballroom, New York City, May 31, 2013.

 

Video

2013 National Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Highlights:

 

 

To download Award ceremony excerpt (for media use only):

Award Ceremony Excerpt (MP4-208MB)

Watch webcast replay of National Ceremony here.

 

Archived Press Releases