In a great year for Wildcat artists, Windward students swept nearly 50 awards in this year’s Scholastic Art competition.

Students won the prestigious accolades across six different categories: architecture and industrial design, digital art, fashion, film and animation, photography, and sculpture.

“As an artist it feels great to receive recognition on a higher level because it shows that people are responding well to my work and find what I’ve created to be of substance,” said Windward student Zadie Greenwald (‘26), whose photography submissions have won multiple awards.

Students and teachers both see the value of the competition, with some art teachers requiring students to submit work to the competition, while others strongly encourage it.

For the last 17 years, Windward photography teacher Hannah Northenor has required submission to the contest. Individually meeting with each student, Hannah helps students select the work that best reflects their artistic talent and voice.

“I have seen what a transformative experience it has been for my students to receive awards and be validated by somebody outside of an educational form, outside of a family member,” said Hannah, “just this anonymous human saying, this is really good and you’re worthy.”

Within photography alone, Windward won over forty total awards, including ten gold keys – the highest level of distinction. According to Hannah, some photography students won multiple gold keys and received upwards of five awards.

“That tells me something about the quality of the work,” Hannah said. “If we’re looking at a holistic body of work, multiple images are resonating with these anonymous judges, it tells me there’s something good going on.”

Beyond regional awards, photography student Yaretzi Hernandez Matias ‘27 placed nationally, earning a Gold Key from the 2025 National Scholastic Awards. Her winning photo, a black-and-white portrait, was a significant achievement for the Visual and Media Arts Department, marking the first National Award in photography since 2020.

Yaretzi Hernandez Matias – National Gold Key

Photography wasn’t the only department that had a successful year for awards. The animation department also had an excellent showing.

“This year we have more key awards and honorable mentions than ever before,” said animation teacher Colleen Hargaden. “With the growth of the Media Arts and Film program comes stronger student work and higher submission numbers, so we are slowly but surely gaining a footing in the national competition with each passing year.”

The animation department encourages students to submit to Scholastic and makes submission a requirement for the more advanced levels. Colleen sees positive benefits of submitting art to competitions, similar to Hannah.

“Participating in external opportunities like these has a huge impact on creative confidence and creative kinship,” said Colleen.

Animation student Wyatt Frank (‘26) received an award for his animation and similarly sees the value in receiving positive feedback from competitions.

“It is always important to show the world anything you create, and it can be very encouraging to win an award,” said Wyatt.

Because receiving an honor can boost a young artist’s confidence, proving their talent and creativity, Windward students urge their fellow artists to submit.

“There really is no downside to submitting your art,” remarked Wyatt. Even though there is a submission fee when uploading to Scholastic, many Windward art departments offer assistance with the payment.

“Don’t be discouraged if you don’t win anything,” said gold-key-winning photography student Eden Lynn (‘26). “I didn’t win the first time I submitted and the second time I won three awards, so keep trying.”

Zadie agrees and urges other students to not feel discouraged if they don’t win an award because judging is subjective.

The New Building

The Windward Innovation & Arts Center, set to be opened in the fall, will have gallery space to display student artwork. The photography department is excited for this new addition to the campus.

“We have this beautiful hallway space that we’ve already discussed having Scholastic work in annually,” said Hannah.

Zadie added that she hopes that the new building’s gallery will be a space for all artwork, not just pieces that won awards, because she sees the importance in all people being able to show off work they’re proud of in a formal setting.

As for animation, the Media Arts and Film Lab Showcase will be hosted at the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica on Sunday, May 18th at 12:30 PM, where students’ animations will be shown.

“There will be some fantastic work featured,” Colleen said. “Windwardians and their extended communities will not want to miss it!”