Cassie Marceau, Kara Ellsmore, Audrey Perreault, Nicole DiBiase, and Annie Acker-Wolfhagen, all seniors at Gorham High School (GHS), along with sophomores Autumn Heil and Callie Russell, were recently recognized for their creative achievements in their writing projects submitted to Southern Maine Writing Project and the Betterment Fund and Alliance for the Young Artist and Writers.

They were presented with the Scholastic Art & Writing Award of 2017 at the University of Southern Maine in March. Lucinda Stein, an English teacher at GHS who was an advocate on the students’ behalf, attended the awards ceremony with Marceau and Ellsmore.

“I always try to show the students that writing is relevant in our lives, which is why I encourage students to enter various writing contests during the year,” said Stein. “I present students with multiple contest opportunities and, ultimately, they choose their contests.”

Stein works with the students through the writing process as needed. She feels the Scholastic contest is probably the most prestigious contest that some students choose to enter as the highest national winners are awarded significant scholarships. “I am incredibly proud of all of my writers,” added Stein.

The five seniors in Stein’s class who were recognized for their poetry submissions and received an honorable mention, except Ellsmore
who received a Silver Award, are: Marceau for her title “Papa,” Ellsmore for “Thirteen,” Perreault for “Now You See Me,” DiBiase for “Rickety Existence,” and Acker-Wolfhagen for “A Small Minded World.”

Heil and Russell, who are not in Stein’s class, submitted their work individually and received honorable recognition at USM. All seven were given pins and certificates at the state level.

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards is the nation’s longest- running and most prestigious recognition program for creative teens in grades 7-12. Last year, students submitted nearly 320,000 works of visual art and writing to the Scholastic Awards. More than 85,000 works were recognized at the regional level and celebrated in local exhibitions and ceremonies. The top art and writing at the regional level were moved onto the national stage, where 2,500 works earned National Medals. National Medalists and their educators were celebrated at the National Ceremony at Carnegie Hall in New York City.