Every year, the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers (AYAW) hosts an opportunity for students across the nation to be honored for their creativity and originality in the arts. Included in the 2025 winners were 16 Green Hope High School students who received honors for their work: Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.
Winners:
- Alexandra Atanasova ‘26
- Charis Choy ‘26
- Isabella Der ‘26
- Marcus Hulbig ‘26
- Angelina Lu ‘26
- Karuna Shanmugam ‘26
- Alex Steele ‘26
- Avril Yan ‘26 (Gold Key winner)
- Advaita Badaya ‘27
- Jenny Fan ‘27
- Eleanor Fewkes ‘27
- Amruta Mayadeo ‘27
- Chinmayi Pasunuri ‘27
- Hannah Xu ‘27
- An Nguyen ‘28
- Abigail Song ‘28
These talented students are all members of Ms. Melissa Poppe’s Visual Arts classes, some at advanced levels, and others not. Out of 24 submissions from Green Hope students, the aforementioned 16 students were selected by the AYAW to be recognized for their pieces that exemplified thoughtfulness, originality and personality.
The GH Falcon sat down with two-time Gold Key winner Avril Yan to discuss her art and how she uses it to represent her life experiences and cultural heritage. A Gold Key is the highest level of consideration following initial submissions. In last year’s competition, Yan received a national medal, which is only possible for Gold Key winners, and was recognized at East Carolina University (ECU) for her artistic excellence. This year’s national recognition ceremony falls on Saturday, Feb. 21, again at ECU.
Yan’s 2025 submission was a portfolio of textile pieces, mostly quilts, with all pieces featuring hand-sewn and hand-embroidered elements. Yan wanted her pieces to tell a story of female artists in fine arts while connecting them to her familial experiences. “My main point of contention was about textile art historically being related to female domesticity,” she said. “It is almost like a sense of reclamation and fighting for that place in textile art.” Her collection, titled “I Cannot Speak My Native Language,” conveyed stories about her relationship with her grandmother and the challenges that come with a generational gap.
As previously stated, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are annual, and this is Yan’s second consecutive year winning a Gold Key. Last year, she won with a hand-sewn quilt that depicted collaged images of herself, her mother and her grandmother. Her piece was nominated for the “American Visions” award and won it at the national level. Yan shared that for her, art is a form of communication, and for these pieces, specifically with her grandmother. “I think in that way I use art as my own form of communication with her, but she can’t really understand my art, and I can’t really understand her language.”
Yan being honored for her creativity reflects on the prowess of the Green Hope Art program and opens doors for future artistic opportunities for herself and other artistic students. Sophomore An Nguyen was also a recipient of a Scholastic Art Award for her submissions of an acrylic painting and a mixed-media piece, both depicting her younger sister. Nguyen has been doing art since she was a small child, and looks to pursue it throughout the rest of high school and college.
Marcus Hulbig is another talented artist that has been extremely creative since his early childhood. To him, the award was more than honor, but also a symbol of recognition for his art. As many other deserving artists feel, his sentiments towards receiving the award remain simple yet significant. “I’m happy to have gotten it, it shows that my art is actually pretty decent,” he said. His recognition represents the value of persistence and resilience when it comes to creative expression.
Hulbig emphasized his outlook on the award as more than just an achievement, but a place he can grow from. He revealed that the nuances in his artwork carry a lot of meaning to him personally. He elaborated, saying that he hopes to take away something meaningful from this experience, like the way his audience may perceive his art, and to find ways to make his symbolism stronger. Ultimately, he views this opportunity as a stepping stone to grow into a more refined artist that resonates with the people around him.
As these students advance in pursuing their interest in art, either as a career or a lifelong passion, opportunities like the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards help bring attention to their creative expression. The meaningful insights that students receive from these experiences help open doors into future competitions and professional pathways in art.
A supportive mentor is incredibly important in any journey, but especially a creative one. Ms. Poppe teaches multiple levels of art classes, and she encourages her students to pursue mediums that best allow them to express themselves through creativity. As Yan put it, “I think she helped me realize the possibility of what you can do with art in ways that can enrich your life.” Yan and Nguyen both noted that Ms. Poppe always seems to have the answers and is incredibly inspirational when her students may be in a rough patch or aren’t feeling inspired.
The success of Green Hope’s visual arts community relies on valuing and integrating personal identity, cultural appreciation and originality across a wide range of media. With the guidance of mentors like Ms. Poppe, along with talented artists, the program continues to foster an environment where creativity and individuality are not only supported, but celebrated and rewarded.
