2024 Scholastic Writing Awards

L-R: Josephine Nackman ‘27, Alaina Walker ‘24, Dorothy Woods ‘26, and Anna Callender ’25 attend the Scholastic Writing Awards recognition ceremony at UDC’s Theatre of the Arts

Several Madeira writers were honored with 2024 Regional Scholastic Art Awards, bringing our school-wide total to two Gold Keys, two Silver Keys, and 10 Honorable Mentions.

The Scholastic Art Awards program, presented by the Alliance for Youth Artists and Writers, is the largest, longest-running recognition program of its kind in the United States. Established in 1923, the awards have recognized students who have become some of our nation’s most celebrated artists. More than 200,000 students participate in the program across the country.

According to the Alliance’s website, “Entries are selected for awards without knowledge of the student’s gender, age, ethnicity, or hometown by some of the foremost leaders in the visual and literary arts. Jurors look for works that exemplify the Awards’ core values: originality, skill, and the emergence of a personal voice or vision.”

Some famous faces have graced the judging panel in the past, including Langston Hughes, Judy Blume, Billy Collins, David Sedaris, Nikki Giovanni, Ocean Vuong, Elizabeth Acevedo, and more.

A portion of Zsuzsa Teleki’s piece was also published in this year’s issue of GATE, a student-led literary journal

Gold Key-awarded entries are automatically considered for national awards, including Gold Medal, Silver Medal, and scholarship awards. National awards will be announced later this spring and will be celebrated at a ceremony in New York City.

Congratulations to all the Madeira students who received honors at the regional level this year:

• Anna Callender, '25: Novel: "Dashed" (Silver Key)
• Ace Clarkson, '24: Writing Portfolio: "Democratically Elected Best Fragments of a Very Scared Teenager” (Honorable Mention)
• Jacqueline Gibson, '24: Short Story: "The Kindness" (Silver Key)
• Ziru (Josephine) Li '26: Critical Essay, "Enduring Melodies of History" (Honorable Mention)
• Jordan Loy, '25: Poetry, "The Beat of My Ancestors" (Honorable Mention)
• Josephine Nackman, '27: Science Fiction & Fantasy, "The Sleep Experiment" (Honorable Mention)
• Sophia Ren, '26: Humor, "Insomniac's Dream” (Honorable Mention)
• Zsuzsa Teleki, '27: Dramatic Script, "A Piece of Red Ribbon" (Honorable Mention)
• Alaina Walker, '24: Personal Essay & Memoir, "Moments and Memories: Medal of Honor" (Gold Key)
• Dorothy Woods, '26: Short Story, "Favorite Things" (Gold Key)
• Dorothy Woods, '26: Poetry, "left" (Honorable Mention)
• Minna Xu, '25: Poetry, "Gingko Leaves" (Honorable Mention)
• Minna Xu, '25: Poetry, "Somewhere not there" (Honorable Mention)
• Minna Xu, '25: Journalism, "Billionaire Submarine or Migrant Boat? The Discrepancy in Media Coverage" (Honorable Mention)

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