Schools

Nicolet Students Heading to Carnegie Hall

Two students win Scholastic Art and Writing awards and now will head to New York in May.

Nicolet High School students Leo Purman and Alexis Wilkinson have received awards from the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, an 88-year-old program that recognizes creative and artistic teens, and offers scholarship opportunities for graduating seniors.

Purman, a junior, received one of only two American Visions Awards in the state of Wisconsin, a gold medal for his photography and a silver medal for digital art.

Wilkinson, a senoir, received the American Voices Award, in the humor category, for writing.

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These two nationally award winning students will head to Carnegie Hall in New York on May 31 for a special recognition ceremony hosted by the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers. Select art and writing pieces will be featured at the World Financial Courtyard Gallery in Lower Manhattan from June 1 to 19.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has declared May 31 as the official Scholastic Art and Writing Awards Day, and the top of the Empire State Building will be lit in gold to honor the students' achievements.

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The awards were first given out in 1923, and since have recognized more than 13 million students and issued more than $25 million in scholarships.

"For 88 years, the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards have provided the nation's most creative teens with opportunities for recognition, exhibition, publication and scholarships," said Virginia McEnerney, executive director of Alliance. "Over the years, these teens have consistently gone on to form the core of their generation's creative leadership, not only by producing artwork with worldwide impact, but also by teaching, leading art museums, writing screenplays, producing films and exemplifying the values of creative self-expression that the Awards encourage."

Some well-known artists and writers who have also been acknowledged when they were in high school include Robert Redford, Andy Warhol, John Lithgow, Zac Posen, Sylvia Plath and Richard Avedon.


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