The Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center (SKyPAC) is proud to announce the National Medalist recipients in the 2017 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards from south central Kentucky:
The Scream of a Scared Heart, Photo by: Jasmine Allen- Jasmine Allen, American Visions Medal – The Scream of a Scared Heart – Photography, Ohio County High School, 12th Grade, (Teacher: Farrah Belhasen)
- Zack Logsdon, American Voices Medal – Justice in a Small Town: In Cold Blood – Critical Essay, Allen Co-Scottsville High School, 12th Grade (Teacher: Lisa Williams) Read Zack’s critical essay here.
Students and educators received an email from the national office instructing them to log into their accounts to find out about their award, as well as and further information on attending the National Award Ceremony in New York City. The 2017 Scholastic Art & Writing National Events take place at Carnegie Hall from June 7–9, 2017.
“It’s exciting to once again have students from our region represented at the national level in the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. This year is the first year we’ve hosted the writing portion of the Scholastic Awards, so to have students receiving medals in both art and writing areas is exceptional! Every student involved in the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards should stay connected with the organization for inspiration and scholarship opportunities,” said Jessica Snodgrass, SKyPAC Marketing and Gallery Director.
For more information about how your student can participate in next year’s Scholastic Art & Writing Awards program or would like to become a local/regional sponsor for the exhibition or ceremony please contact our Marketing and Gallery Director, Jessica Snodgrass, by phone at 270-904-5001 or email jsnodgrass@theskypac.com.
About the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
Since the program’s founding in 1923, all works are blindly judged based on originality, technical skill, and the emergence of a personal vision or voice. For Gold Key works of art and writing in the Awards’ 29 categories including photography, poetry, sculpture, humor, video game design, and more, the opportunities for recognition will continue when the works are adjudicated again on a national level by a panel of leading creative professionals.
“Year after year, I am astounded by the groundswell of creativity that pours out of students from every corner of the country through the regional Scholastic Art & Writing Awards,” said Virginia McEnerney, Executive Director of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers. “This program develops young talent through this first act of recognition here at home—a defining moment of validation on students’ journeys to personal and professional success—then again on the national level by opening the doors of opportunity for exhibition, publication and access to millions of dollars in scholarships.”
All students who receive Scholastic Art & Writing Awards walk in the footsteps of notable Scholastic Awards Alumni who have gone on to become leaders in their fields, including Andy Warhol, Truman Capote, Richard Avedon, Sylvia Plath, and filmmaker Ken Burns, all of whom received Scholastic Awards when they were teens. More recently, Myla Goldberg, Richard Linklater, Zac Posen, and Lena Dunham have become celebrated Alumni of the program. National Gold Medalists will be honored during a special awards ceremony at the world-famous Carnegie Hall in New York City and all National recipients are eligible for a wealth of additional opportunities such as inclusion in the Art.Write.Now.Tour traveling exhibition and The Best Teen Writing anthology. National Medalist poets are considered for the National Student Poets Program, the nation’s highest honor for young poets presenting original work.
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 New York Times, Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP, The National Endowment for the Arts, Blick Art Materials & Utrecht Art Supplies, The Herb Block Foundation, RBC Capital Markets, Neiman Marcus, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Golden Artist Colors, The Gedenk Movement, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; numerous other individual, foundation, and corporate funders; and, for the National Student Poets Program, the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. A complete list of 2017 regional Scholastic Art & Writing Awards recipients will available online at artandwriting.org To learn more about the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, visit the online Scholastic News Room at mediaroom.scholastic.com/artandwriting.
