News & Press

Governor's School Writers Receive National Scholastic Portfolio Awards

March 24, 2011

SOUTH CAROLINA - March 24, 2011 -South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts and Humanities (SC Governor's School) students Victoria Ford and Luke Hodges have won the national , the highest level of recognition in the 2011 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. Each student will receive a $10,000 cash scholarship. The students won two of only seven awarded nationally by Scholastic and were the only portfolio winners in South Carolina and the Southeast.

Ford won for her creative nonfiction portfolio. Before coming to the SC Governor's School, Ford attended Greenville High School. Hodges received the award for his general writing portfolio. Originally from Columbia and Dreher High School, he is the son of former Governor James H. Hodges. Ford and Hodges will be honored during a ceremony this May at New York City's Carnegie Hall.

In addition to Ford and Hodges' portfolio wins, 11 other the SC Governor's School writers added 21 national Scholastic Awards to the list of the SC Governor's School accomplishments, including 10 Gold Medals.

"The Scholastic Writing Awards is the nation's most prestigious writing competition for high school students," says Scott Gould, Chair for Creative Writing, the SC Governor's School.

The nonprofit Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, which administers the Awards, will honor national winners at a special ceremony at the world-famous Carnegie Hall in New York City on May 31. Select award-winning art and writing will be exhibited at the World Financial Center Courtyard Gallery in Lower Manhattan from June 1 - 19. New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg has declared May 31 the official Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Day and the top of the Empire State Building will be lit in gold in honor of the students' achievements.

About The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers:

Distinguished Scholastic Art & Writing Awards alumni include Andy Warhol, Robert Redford, Richard Avedon, Zac Posen, Joyce Carol Oates, Sylvia Plath, John Lithgow, Ned Vizzini, Abdi Farah (winner of the Bravo reality show Work of Art: The Next Great Artist) and esteemed artist John Baldessari, who will accept the Alliance's annual Alumni Achievement Award at the Carnegie Hall Awards Ceremony.

The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers identifies teenagers with exceptional artistic and literary talent and brings their remarkable work to a national audience through the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. The Awards, which have recognized more than 13 million students, continue to be the longest-running, most prestigious program for creative teens and the largest source of scholarships for young artists and writers. The program is generously supported by Scholastic Inc., Maurice R. Robinson Foundation, Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, Command Web Offset, AMD Foundation, The New York Times, Dick Blick Co., Ovation, and New York Life Foundation.

List of additional Creative Writing Students Awards

Aiken County

Anna Faison, Aiken, South Aiken High School

Gold Medal, Personal Essay/Memoir
Gold Medal, Humor
Writing Portfolio Silver Medal with Distinction ($1000 scholarship) General Writing Portfolio

Beaufort County

Anna Pittman, Bluffton, Hilton Head High School

Gold Medal, Poetry

Megan Gallagher, Beaufort, Beaufort Academy

Writing Portfolio Silver Medal with Distinction ($1000 scholarship), General Writing Portfolio
Writing Portfolio Silver Medal, Nonfiction Writing Portfolio

Charleston County

Lukas Hadtstein, Isle of Palms, Wando High School

Silver Medal, Humor

Florence County

Da'Shawn Mosley, Florence, Wilson High School

Silver Medal, Poetry

Greenville County

Emilea Wright, Greenville, Greenville Technical Charter High School

Gold Medal, Short Short Story
Silver Medal, Short Story
Writing Portfolio Silver Medal with Distinction ($1000 scholarship), Nonfiction Writing Portfolio

Lexington County

Jessica Catalano, Columbia, Irmo High School

Writing Portfolio Silver Medal with Distinction ($1000 scholarship), Nonfiction Writing Portfolio

Richland County

Victoria Sharpe, Columbia, Dreher High School

Gold Medal, Personal Essay/Memoir
Writing Portfolio Silver Medal, General Writing Portfolio

Eric Stiefel, Columbia, Heathwood Hall Episcopal School

Gold Medal, Short Short Story

Spartanburg County

Emily Alverson, Spartanburg, Dorman High School

Writing Portfolio Silver Medal with Distinction ($1000 scholarship), General Writing Portfolio

Katherine Carter, Duncan, James F. Bynes High School

Gold Medal, Personal Essay/Memoir
Writing Portfolio Silver Medal with Distinction ($1000 scholarship), Nonfiction Writing Portfolio

L-R: Luke Hodges, Victoria Ford

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