Saratoga News

Scholastic writing award winners from Saint Andrew's School are (from left) Andrea Gremer, Magda Szalay and Katherine Dunlap.

Students win national awards

Three students at Saint Andrew's School in Saratoga have been named as national winners of Scholastic Writing Awards by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers Inc., a nonprofit organization in New York.

Magda Szalay, an eighth-grade student, received a Gold Award for her short story, "A Final Trip to Tower Green," an imaginary diary written by a lady who stayed with Anne Boleyn in the Tower of London before the queen's execution on May 19, 1536. The story is based on historical facts and Magda's summer visit to the Tower of London.

Katherine Dunlap, an eighth-grader, received a Silver Award for her poem, "Sheltered," which comments on the fact that she is protected from many of today's ills by her parents and community. "I hear about hate, violence, starvation, war, poverty, but it is not happening to me," she writes. "I am in my secure surroundings, where I am kept innocent and ignorant. Ignorant of what the world is like for the ones who are suffering."

Both of the eighth-grade winners will travel to Washington, D. C., to receive their awards in person at a ceremony hosted by the Library of Congress.

Andrea Gremer, a seventh-grader, received a Gold Award for her poem, "My Words," which speaks about the power of words to bring both joy and sorrow.

The winners are students of Language Arts teacher Laurel Browning, who encouraged her students to enter the national competition.

"I am as thrilled as the students are and not at all surprised," Browning said. "We have extremely talented and enthusiastic students here and their communication, and writing skills are exemplary. I am so glad that their talents have been recognized."

Winning entries of the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards will be on display in the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D. C., throughout the month of June. The awards have been given annually since 1923.

Judges for the writing awards were: Richard Schickel, Time critic; Bob Herbert, columnist for the New York Times; Madeleine L'Engle, novelist; Esmeralda Santiago, novelist; and R. L. Stine, the author of Goosebumps.

While in high school, Joyce Carol Oates, Bernard Malamud, Richard Avedon, Truman Capote and Sylvia Plath, among others, were recognized through Scholastic Writing Awards for their creative talents.

The three winners from Saint Andrews were chosen from 12,000 entries in this year's contest.

Andrea's parents are Mr. and Mrs. David Gremer. Magda is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Tibor Szalay and Katherine's parents are Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Dunlap, all of Saratoga.