By Alana Benoit, Manager of National Programs

For the first time ever, in celebration of our 90th Anniversary, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards will webcast the 2013 National Awards Ceremony LIVE from Carnegie Hall on May 31 at 6:00 p.m. EST/3:00 p.m. PST. That means YOU can join in! We’re working hard to make this event extra special for everyone, including those who are unable to be at Carnegie Hall. We’re broadcasting this event with all of you in mind!

On May 31, we will be joined by special guests Sarah Jessica Parker and Zac Posen to honor National Awards winners from across the country; recognizing their achievement and the commitment of teachers, friends and supporters that help make the Awards possible. We hope you’ll share this incredible moment with us by watching the Ceremony on our Webcast page. Read More

“I am inspired when looking back at old journals and sketchbooks. Seeing the progress I’ve made and remembering where I started is a huge source of inspiration and motivation, especially when revisiting and reviving old themes in my art.”
– Courtney Buckland, Project Administrator at the Alliance/Scholastic Awards

We recently joined Instagram! And since then, we’ve seen a lot of amazing photos of art and writing by talented teens, which got us wondering: what’s the inspiration behind them?

So, we’re asking all of you to snap a photo of your creative inspiration using the hashtag #AWmyinspiration. It could be a photo of your favorite album, a favorite quote, or even some fun street art – whatever inspires you to be creative.

We’ll even feature some of our favorite submissions right here on our blog and Tumblr page!

If you’re not on Instagram you can still share your inspiration by posting your pic on our Facebook Timeline or tweeting it to us at @artandwriting using the same hashtag. And be sure to follow us on Instagram to see creative inspirations from our staff (like the one above)!

We look forward to seeing what fuels your creativity!

Spring is here and with it, an opportunity to click and shoot with the pros at the International Center of Photography’s Teen Academy! NYC-area teen photographers, you have until tomorrow, Friday March 29, to sign up for these classes that begin mid-April and run through June. For film buffs: ICP Teen Academy is one of the few remaining photography schools in which you use real film and have access to a darkroom to develop your photos! Scholarships may still be available (http://www.icp.org/sites/default/files/exhibition_pdfs/icp_teen_scholarship_application_s13.pdf) but you must act fast!

Here at the national office, we’ve been very busy processing Northeast Art Region-at-Large submissions, and are currently working with a group of exceptional artists (some of whom are past Scholastic Award winners) to adjudicate all the works we’ve received. We feel very grateful for all of the interns who’ve been helping us throughout the process. All of them are artists and writers too! Here’s what some of them have to say about their experience working here:

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While most of us are preparing for the end of the year, students nationwide are racing to meet Scholastic Art & Writing Awards’ deadlines, submitting hundreds of thousands of original art and writing. At our peak, the Awards will receive over 6,000 entries a day.

The Awards has grown since it began in 1923, but the criteria remain the same – originality, technical skill, and the emergence of a personal voice. Together, through schools across the country, we  have inspired millions of teens to create. Over our 90 year history, the Awards have become the nation’s highest honor for creative teens. Today,  winners earn over $8 million in scholarships annually.

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Rachel Brosnahan and Bernadette Peters in Coming Up Roses.
(Source: http://www.cominguproses-movie.com )

Here at the Alliance, we come across many creative and talented individuals. From the incredible young artists and writers that participate in the Scholastic Awards each year to the brilliant teachers and jurors that work with us, our staff is constantly inspired by people like you.

But, did you know that many of our staff members are also artists and writers?

Our Web & IT Director, Dominic Matar, recently surprised us with some awesome news – he wrote the soundtrack to Coming Up Roses, a film starring Bernadette Peters that’s currently playing in theaters! Check out the trailer below:

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