How We Can Help

Writopia Lab is thrilled to serve as the Regional Affiliate for The Writing Awards in Greater Washington this year. We are available to:

• answer questions about registration and submission,
• make classroom visits to inform and inspire your students,
• help students write quality pieces through our after-school workshops, special events, and private sessions, and
• provide promotional materials such as posters and postcards.

Please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for assistance.

Why do students participate in The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards?

College Preparation: To develop the skills and vision needed for college admissions.

Scholarships and Cash Awards: To earn scholarships from a pool of over $3.5 million in tuition support, the largest source of funding for teens in the arts. Students can also earn cash awards ranging from $500 to $10,000 for outstanding submissions.

Publications: To be published in one of The Alliance’s publications for award-winning writers, including Best Teen Writing and Spark.

Summer Intensives: To earn scholarships to attend summer writing intensive programs. Students who demonstrate financial need will be given special assistance.

Professional Experience: To build credentials for résumés and applications to college and employers.

Recognition: To participate in the nation’s most prestigious recognition program for young writers, which identified the early promise of authors such as Sylvia Plath, Truman Capote, and Joyce Carol Oates.

Next Steps

The deadline for our region is January 7, 2011.

We will hold a Regional Award Ceremony this spring (date TBA) to recognize both outstanding DC-area writers and their teachers!

Thank you again for your daily commitment to young artists and writers. With your help, we look forward to recognizing our the DC area’s most creative teenagers through The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards!

Nearly 200,000 students will accept the challenge to go beyond the classroom assignment, creating daring and innovative works. They will submit their best pieces for review by panels of art and writing professionals, and compete for recognition, scholarships, and publication opportunities. Entering this competition is a fantastic opportunity for students to focus their creative energy and to make their voices heard.

Since 1923, more than 13 million of America’s most talented teens have participated in the Awards. 2.5 million students have been recognized through exhibitions and publications and have shared in more than $25 million in cash awards and college scholarships.

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards has a long list of distinguished alumni that includes Andy Warhol, Robert Redford, Sue Miller, Richard Avedon, Zac Posen, Joyce Carol Oates, Tom Otterness, Sylvia Plath, John Lithgow, Ned Vizzini, Abdi Farah (winner of the reality show Work of Art: The Next Great Artist), and John Baldessari, who will accept this year’s Alumni Achievement Award at a Carnegie Hall Ceremony in May of 2011.