The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards is a competition started by founder Dr. William Walker Robinson. The founder was disappointed seeing only sports being celebrated and wanted to put art and writing into the spotlight. According to the digital art teacher, Ms. Carnevale, “Students enter their own work online with an entry fee (paid for by the school in most cases) and sign any necessary waivers.” Grades 7–12, across the United States and Canada, submit art and writing pieces or portfolios to the Scholastic Awards in hopes of getting recognized by professionals and colleges, or gaining scholarships and educational opportunities.
According to the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards website, ArtandWriting.org, “In 2025, nearly 110,000 teens across the United States and Canada entered more than 310,000 original works in 28 different categories of art and writing.” Categories for the art application range from, Architecture & Industrial Design, Ceramics & Glass, Comic Art, Design, Digital Art, Drawing & Illustration, Fashion, Film & Animation, to Jewelry, Mixed Media, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, Sculpture and many more.
Starting October 1, 2025 entries for the 2026 awards opened and after some hard work students were ready to submit their art by January 6, 2026. Finally after weeks of patience, the results for the 2026 Scholastic Art Awards are in. Congratulations to Eddie Dunn, Class of 2028; Lillian Kuhn, Zadie Quon, Lilly Waltz, and Tru Baleria, Class of 2027, and Zoe Griffin and Kyley Gadway, Class of 2026. Their pieces will be displayed at the Denver Art Museum and 40 West Gallery from February 2 to March 12, 2026. Tickets can be picked up at 40 West Gallery. The art will also be available to view online at artandwriting.org under the gallery tab. The Awards ceremony was on February 28 at the Martin Building in Denver, CO; National winners will go on to the awards Ceremony at Rockefeller Center, New York NY, June 9 to June 11. 2026.
Within the past 5 years Coronado has won eleven golden key awards. On average Coronado has at least two gold keys in art, peaking in 2024 with three keys. Past gold and silver key art work can be found in the auditorium hallway.
