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Harris County Department of Education recognizes the art and writing talents of teens throughout Harris County as regional sponsors of the celebrated 2019 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. Artist award ceremonies, receptions and scholarships are announced as 3,263 Harris County students from public, private and home schools receive awards.

View the student awardees: https://hcde-texas.org/scholastic-awards/awardees/ .

Twenty-two school districts, 26 private schools and home schools are represented as students earn Gold Key, Silver Key and honorable mention awards. Top-award Gold Key recipients advance to national judging to be considered for Gold and Silver Medals which are announced March 12 and awarded on June 6 through a ceremony at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

Awardees find common ground with alumni Scholastic Art & Writing honorees and famous writers and artists such as Stephen King, Dan Fogelberg, Sylvia Plath, Robert Redford, Truman Capote, Andy Warhol, Joyce Carol Oates, Marc Brown and Jaida Jones.
The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, founded in 1923, provides young artists and writers in grades 7-12 with the opportunity to showcase their art and writing talents. The competition’s mission is to bring outstanding visual art and writing created by teens to a national audience by showcasing the work and encouraging creative and career development.

“Judges who are writing and art professionals volunteered to judge an amazing record number of 7,742 entries of art and writing this year ranging from photography to poetry to mixed media to short stories,” said Andrea Segraves, regional coordinator for Scholastic Art & Writing at HCDE. “In addition to being beholden to our judges, we recognize the dedication of teachers who help these young artists cultivate their talents and assist them in entering their work.”

Students submitted their work through the 759 teachers who support and participate in HCDE’s regional competition. Several hundred volunteer art and writing professionals judge the submittals.

“We are grateful for the supporters of Scholastic Art & Writing in Harris County—from the community supporters who offer space to showcase art and writing to the companies who offer student scholarships to the hundreds of judges who volunteer their time,” said HCDE Superintendent James Colbert Jr. “There is a deep well of artistic talent represented, and we are proud to host, showcase and support this iconic program.”

The following area school districts are represented: Aldine, Alief, Alvin, Clear Creek, Crosby, Cy-Fair, Deer Park, Galena Park, Goose Creek, Houston, Huffman, Humble, Katy, Klein, New Caney, Pasadena, Pearland, Spring Branch, Spring, Tomball and Waller.

Private school students with awards include: British International School of Houston, Concordia Lutheran High School, Duchesne Academy Of Sacred Heart, Emery Weiner School, Episcopal High School, Houston Christian High School, Incarnate Word Academy, Kinkaid School, River Oaks Baptist School, St Agnes Academy, St Francis Episcopal Day School, St. John’s School, Veritas Christian Academy, the Village School, Awty International School, Incarnate Word Academy, Kinkaid School, Presbyterian School, River Oaks Baptist School, St. Agnes Academy, St John XXIII Preparatory High School and St. Thomas Episcopal School.

Through the art categories, students gain 361 Gold Keys, 514 Silver Keys, and 835 honorable mentions. In the writing categories, students earn 359 Gold Keys, 579 Silver Keys, and 615 honorable mentions.

Ten students earned recognition through the American Voices and American Vision awards. These 10 awards are judged nationally through Scholastic Art & Writing in New York City for American Voices/American Visions Medals. One in each art and writing category will be selected and announced in March.

American Visions (art) nominees:  Carolina Colon, Clear Lake Intermediate School, Clear Creek ISD; Julia Espino, Cypress Woods High School, Cy-Fair ISD; Axel Maldonado, Sam Rayburn High School, Pasadena ISD; Anthony Vega, Sam Rayburn High School, Pasadena ISD; and Annie Zhu (individual entry).

American Voices (writing) nominees:  Nyla Hartigan, St. John’s School, private; Kahani Malhotra, Village School, private; Luke Stein, Klein Collins High School, Klein ISD; Jack Trent, St. John’s School, private; and Elizabeth Willms, Deer Park High School-North Campus, Deer Park ISD.

For more information about HCDE’s regional Scholastic Art & Writing Awards and opportunities to sponsor, judge and enter the competition, go to www.hcde-texas.org/scholastic .