The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 1994, identifies teenagers with exceptional creative talent and brings their remarkable work to a national audience through the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. The Alliance partners with nearly 100 Regional Affiliates across the country to provide creative teens with opportunities for recognition, exhibition, publication, and scholarships.

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards provide scholarships for teenagers in the United States. The Awards program was created in 1923 by Maurice R. "Robbie" Robinson, founder of Scholastic Corporation, and has been administered by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers since 1994. Its past award recipients include Andy Warhol, Frances Farmer, Sylvia Plath, Truman Capote, Richard Avedon, Richard Linklater, Stephen King, John Updike, Ken Burns, Lena Dunham, Zac Posen and Joyce Carol Oates among many others.

Established to ensure that literary and artistic talent were recognized in schools and communities across the country, the program began as a small writing contest; today, it offers recognition in 29 categories including architecture, sculpture, painting, photography, poetry, dramatic script, fashion, animation, and video games. The Awards are open to all students in grades 7 through 12 from public, private, and home schools throughout the U.S. (and its territories), as well as American-run schools abroad and community programs serving eligible student populations.

The selection panels for both regional and national levels of the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are composed of artists, writers, curators, critics, educators, and professionals from the nation’s leading creative industries, some of whom are alums of the Scholastic Awards. Notable past jurors include Robert Frost, Langston Hughes, David Sedaris, Judy Blume, Bill Murray, Philip-Lorca diCorcia, Mary Ellen Mark, William Saroyan, Frank McCourt, Kiki Smith, George Plimpton, Esmeralda Santiago, Tatiana von Furstenberg, Madeleine L’Engle, Faith Ringgold, and Billy Collins, as well as alums Edward Sorel, Donald Lipski, Ned Vizzini, and Michael Bierut. Panelists look for works that best exemplify originality, technical skill, and the emergence of a personal voice or vision.

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