Mission


The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers tracks the creative development of more than a quarter of a million teenagers across the country. The Alliance’s program goals are:

• Engage a broad cross section of American teenagers to identify creative potential and to showcase a high level of achievement.
• Develop programs that enrich the creative journey for young artists and writers.
• Serve as a source of information for organizations and individuals who wish to support the creative development of our nation’s teenagers.

Leadership

The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers is governed by a 26-member Board of Directors, chaired by Dwight E. Lee. The national office, based in New York City houses a national staff dedicated to the vision and direction of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers.

View program highlights in our annual report
2005 Annual Report
2006 Annual Report
2007 Annual Report (PDF)

Building A Community for Creative Youth

The Alliance provides resources for creative youth to encourage, connect and empower them—through event and online networking, workshops, scholarships and career exploration with alumni role models and industry mentors.

Providing Showcase Opportunities
The Alliance brings remarkable art and writing to a national audience, presenting showcase opportunities for creative expression in the visual and literary arts including:

• The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Showcase, an annual publication and virtual gallery that showcase nationally-recognized work;
• The Best Teen Writing, an annual anthology and virtual gallery of teen writing exemplars from The Scholastic Writing Awards;
• Spark: Young Voices and Visions of 2007, a curated publication and virtual gallery that showcases the creative excellence of 7th and 8th grade emerging artists and writers across the country;
• Kids Reconstruct with Creativity, a curated project of authentic voices and expression of students, grades K – 12, responding to the Gulf Coast hurricanes of 2005;
• ARTifacts: Kids Respond to a World in Crisis, a curated project in response to the events of 9/11;
• The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Annual National Exhibitions.

Working with the Creative Industries
During the national celebration events in New York City, the Alliance provides opportunities for attending artists and writers to receive insight and advice from a variety of professionals in the creative industries through a series of workshops.

Press Releases
As a national organization, the Alliance promotes the creative development of young artists and writers through events, publications and activities.

Click here to view the press releases