St. Margaret’s Students Earn National Recognition in 2026 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

St. Margaret’s Upper and Middle School students have earned national recognition in the 2026 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards recently, one of the country’s most prestigious programs for creative teens.

More than 110,000 students submitted over 335,000 original works nationwide this year. Among them, St. Margaret’s contributed more than 150 entries and celebrated 70 student award recipients, marking a significant achievement for the St. Margaret’s growing arts program.

With this year’s results, St. Margaret’s joins a distinguished legacy of past award winners that includes acclaimed artists and writers such as Stephen King, Joyce Carol Oates, Amanda Gorman, and Andy Warhol, all of whom were recognized by the program as teenagers.

St. Margaret’s continued commitment to fostering creativity across disciplines showcases the strength of the school’s arts curriculum, which encourages students to develop both technical ability and individual expression.

Founded in 1923, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards recognize student achievement across 29 categories, including painting, poetry, digital art, journalism, and novel writing. Submissions are judged anonymously on originality, technical skill, and the strength of a student’s personal voice.

This year’s art honorees from St. Margaret’s represents a wide range of artistic voices and mediums:

April Ma - x3 Illustration and Painting

Enzo Bertolino - Photography

Gavin McCarthy - Photography

Jack Winn - Photography

Liam Newton - Photography

Lucas Caggiano - Photography

Stella Ye - Photography

Joanna Yan - Painting Drawing Collage

April Ma - Printmaking

Benjamin Harrison - Photo

Cameron White - Photo

Carson Barber - Photo

Cyrus Stone - Photo

Enzo Bertolino - Photo

Gavin McCarthy - Photo

Gavin Taylor - x2 Photo

Grant Neuhausen - Photo

Hao Chana - x2 Photo

Jessie Liang - Painting

Mac Ullem - Film

Nate Stykemain - Photo

Nison Cai - Photo

Riggins Cetrulo - Photo

Sami Duran - Photo

Taylor Tomlinson - Photo

Timothy Lindenfelser - x2 Photo

Yuki Zhang - Painting

Jack Winn - Photo

Alex Fluman - Photography

Amitys Behbahani - Photography

Ani Alyanakian - Film and Animation

April Ma - x3 Drawing and Painting

Charlie Allen - Photography

Cooper Harris - Photography

Ella Lancaster - Photography

Enzo Bertolino - Photography

Ethan Whitehead - Architecture

Gavin McCarthy - x2 Photography

Gavin Taylor - Photography

Grace Sukut - Photography

Isabella Huang - Film and Animation

Logan Lowell - Photography

Marcus Vojtus - Photo

Helen Zhang - Painting

Sammy Grant Lewis - Photo

Stella Ye - Photography

Timothy Lindenfelser - x3 Photography

Joanna Yan - x2 Painting

Yige Zhou - x3 Photography

Yuki Zhang - Painting

Enjoy a selection of their work available through this link: click here.

The honorees for writing include:

Ryan Xu: Short Story – "What is Self-Deceit?"

Alisa Jiang: Journalism – "Education Resources for Girls in Guinea"

Alisa Jiang: Critical Essay – "Murderer No Need to Run: The Round House"

Alexander Kim: Poetry – "The Wait of the Harpooner"

Charlotte Coveyou: Short Story – "Echoes of Betrayal"

Ryan Xu: Personal Essay and Memoir – "Before I Knew How to See"

Yige Zhou: Poetry – "Last Hymn"

Yige Zhou: Poetry – "Dancing with Lilacs"

Jasmine Zheng: Poetry – "Take Notice of the Present"

Stella Ye: Poetry – "1.6//3.8"

 

Alexandria McCarthy – Speculative Fiction – Honorable Mention – “Eliminated”

Alexandria McCarthy – Poetry – Silver Key – “Two Thousand Two Hundred Fifty”