More than 2,800 Harris County teen artists and writers in grades 7-12 will be recognized during two regional Scholastic Art & Writing Award ceremonies at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Wednesday, May 3, 2023, at the Wortham Theater Center sponsored by Harris County Department of Education.

Of the more than 12,900 submissions from our area, HCDE—the largest regional sponsor of the awards nationwide—awarded 407 Gold Keys in art, 571 Silver Keys in art, 700 Gold Keys in writing, and 1,156 Silver Keys in writing to students who brought a distinctive and authentic voice and perspective, originality, and technical skill to their work.

Gold Key winners at the local level go on to compete with teen artists from across the country and national winners are exhibited in New York City and celebrated at Carnegie Hall in June.

In March, the top Gold Key recipients from each discipline in our region were selected at the national level as American Voices and American Visions National Medalists.

At 4 p.m. at the Wortham Theater Center (501 Texas Ave., 77002), media is invited to interview American Voices National Medalist Kyra Ezikeuzor, a 10th-grade writing student from St. Agnes Academy about her poem, “My Nigeria.”

Artwork and written pieces by National Medalists and regional award winners will be on display this evening at the Wortham Theater Center and will be subsequently exhibited May 8-15 at HCDE’s Conference Center (6300 Irvington Blvd., 77022).

Presented by the nonprofit organization the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers, this year marks the 100th anniversary of the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, the country's longest-running and most prestigious scholarship and recognition program for creative students in grades 7-12.

The Awards have fostered the creativity and talent of millions of students and include a distinguished list of alumni such as Tschabalala Self, Stephen King, Andy Warhol, Sylvia Plath, Amanda Gorman, Truman Capote, Richard Avedon, Robert Redford, and Joyce Carol Oates, all of whom received recognition in the Awards when they were teens.

For more information about the awards and the complete list of winners, visit HCDE-Texas.org/Scholastic-Awards.