What are the the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards?

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are the longest running national recognition and scholarship program for creative teens. Check out artandwriting.org for more information.

How is Region-at-Large connected to the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards?

The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, the non-profit organization that administers the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, partners with more than 100 Affiliate Partners across the country that host the Awards in their community. Region-at-Large is the remote program that serves as the regional Awards for all students who live in areas that are not covered by an Affiliate Partner.

How do I know what region I belong in?

There are two ways to find your region:

1. Plug your zip code into the Scholastic Awards’ Affiliate finder tool. Check both art and writing; you may be in two different regions with two different sets of deadlines for each category type!
2. For students and educators, create a Scholastic Art & Writing Awards account (you will also need to do this to submit!) or log into your existing account. From the home page of your account, you will find links to the websites of both your art and writing region. Please note, you can only create or edit your account once submissions are open.

Who can participate in the Awards?

Students who meet the following criteria are eligible to submit to the Awards:

• In grades 7-12
• Age 13 years or older
• Residing in the United States, U.S. territories or military bases, or Canada

Students should list their current grade level when submitting. Seniors who will graduate mid-term in December are eligible to participate.

How do I submit to the Awards?

1. Create an account! Visit artandwriting.org to create or update your account when submissions open. You can create an account before completing the work you intend to submit, and in fact, we encourage you to do so! The sooner you create an account, the sooner you’ll receive notifications about program updates and approaching deadlines.
2. When you’re ready, upload your completed work(s) and submit payment or fee waiver through your online account.
3. Finally, print, sign, and upload your completed submission form(s). All submission forms must be signed by the student and a parent/guardian. Submission forms may only be submitted via digital upload to the student’s account.

I have been having trouble accessing the Online Registration System to submit my work. What now?

Over the past several days, we have experienced technical issues with our web servers causing slow-downs or occasional errors. We’re very sorry for any frustration or delay that has caused. We have since corrected the server problem, and we will be monitoring the website very closely. If you have trouble accessing the website, please wait five minutes and then try again and you should be able to proceed through the process.

When do submissions open?

Check out our Important Dates to see when the next submission cycle opens.

When are submissions due?

Check out our Important Dates to see when all Region-at-Large submissions are due. If you are also submitting to an Affiliate Partner for art or writing categories, see your Affiliate’s website for your regional submission deadline.

Can I submit more than one work to the Awards?

Yes, each student is welcome to submit as many pieces as they would like in as many categories as they would like! This includes submitting to both art and writing categories.

However, please note that the same work should only be submitted once, and cannot be submitted to multiple categories. Seniors submitting a portfolio may submit the same work as both an individual piece and part of a portfolio.

Can I submit a work to the Awards that I made in last spring?

Works created in the preceding spring semester are eligible for submission, as long as the student has not graduated. We advise students against re-submitting a work to the Awards that they submitted in a previous year, unless the work has been significantly changed. Seniors submitting a portfolio may include a work that received an award in previous years as part of their portfolio.

How do submission fee payments and fee waivers work?

Submission fees are $7.00 per individual submission and $25.00 per senior portfolio submission. All submission fees go towards supporting the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, the 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization responsible for administering the Scholastic Awards. If you are submitting to a region hosted by an Affiliate Partner, submission fees will also go toward supporting the partner organization.

All Region-at-Large submission fees must be paid digitally through the student’s account. Checks for individual submissions will not be accepted. Schools or extracurricular programs providing a bulk payment may pay through PayPal, bank transfer, or mail in one check to cover the fees of all works submitted by their students.

Any student for whom the submission fee is a barrier to participation in the Awards may submit a fee waiver. Fee waivers can be accessed from the student’s account. All fee waivers must be submitted digitally through the student’s account.

I am an educator. Can I pay for multiple students’ submissions to the Awards?

Yes! Educators can pay the submission fee for multiple students. You can either complete payment via PayPal via your educator dashboard or you can follow the instructions provided here to pay by bank transfer or mail in one bulk payment by check. For the 2022 Awards, educators must email ral@artandwriting.org with the requested information by Monday, December 6, 2021, 11:59 pm EST to pay by bank transfer or mail in a payment by check. Please note that as we are working remotely due to COVID-19, we are experiencing mail delays and payment by check is not preferred. Checks will only be accepted from educators completing payment for multiple students’ submissions.

When are the results of the Awards announced?

See our Important Dates to learn more about when Region-at-Large Awards will be announced. Check your Affiliate’s website for information about notifications in regions outside of the remote program.

Will I be notified if I receive an Award?

Due to the high volume of submissions, students who receive Awards will not be personally notified. Students and educators should check their dashboards on regional notification day to learn if they’ve received an Award.

Don’t see an answer to your question here? Check out the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards FAQ for more information.

More questions about submitting through a Region-at-Large program? Contact us!

Email us at ral@artandwriting.org with specific questions about the Scholastic Awards or Region-at-Large. In your email, be sure to include the following:

• Clear subject line
• Username associated with your account
• I am a…student, parent/guardian, educator, etc.
• Are you submitting to art, writing, or both?
• What region are you in? (ex: Region-at-Large West Art, Region-at-Large East Writing, etc.)

Header image credit: 2019 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, Gold Medal in Drawing & Illustration
THALIA AGOSTO, Dormant, Drawing & Illustration. Grade 12, Chicago High School for the Arts, Chicago, IL. Kera MacKenzie, Educator.