UNION SPRINGS - It was a drawing fashioned with respect and love that won Stephanie Quill national recognition.
Jill Connor / The Citizen
Union Springs High School students Joel Terry and Stephanie Quill, both won Gold Awards in the National Scholastic Art and Writing competition and will be going to New York City to receive awards for their drawings.
Union Springs High School students Joel Terry and Stephanie Quill, both won Gold Awards in the National Scholastic Art and Writing competition and will be going to New York City to receive awards for their drawings.
Using white and brown colored pencils, she drew a man whom she reveres, looking pensive with his index finger clinging to his jaw bone, on brown paper.
The man is her grandfather, and she endearingly titled the drawing “Gramps.”
“A couple of years ago my grandfather was very ill, and I just wanted to show him respect and how much I love him by drawing a picture of him,” said Quill, 16, of Aurelius.
Quill, a sophomore at Union Springs High School, submitted “Gramps” to the Scholastic Art Awards and won a Gold Key at the regional level. Never did she imagine that her drawing would turn heads at the national level.
That is until she received a letter not too long ago telling her that she had won a national Gold Award through the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards.
She said the letter was confusing after the first couple of reads, as she thought Scholastic was informing her of her regional win.
“I read it a lot and eventually my dad said, 'I guess you got it,'” she said. “It was a shock.”
Joel Terry couldn't breathe when he got his letter.
“It knocked me off my feet,” he said. “I didn't even believe it. I called my teacher at 9 in the evening, I couldn't really talk because I was so excited.”
Terry, 18, of Union Springs, won his Gold Award for “Hallelujah,” a colored pencil drawing of a preacher standing before a Bible. “Hallelujah” won Terry one of two regional Gold Keys this winter with the second key for “Laid to Rest,” a still life drawing of a duck decoy. “Laid to Rest” also won an American Visions Award, part of the Scholastic Art Awards, which is given to the top five Gold Key winners in the art competition.
“My goal was to get a Gold Key at the regional level,” he said. “I got two Gold Keys and an American Vision Award. I was blown away and very honored at getting the national award. It was a whole other level.”
Scholastic's selection process is very competitive, Union Springs art teacher Jason Charles said. Only about 500 individual works of art receive awards at the national level.
Union Springs students have garnered national Silver Awards in the past, he said, but never before has the high school seen gold.
“To get two of them, it was an absolute shock to me,” Charles said.
“I feel very blessed that our school is so fortunate and the students work hard,” he later added. “I attribute a lot of the success to their hard work.”
On June 5, Quill, Terry and Charles will travel to New York City to formerly be recognized at the National Awards Celebration and The National Exhibition of The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards.
For Terry, the duo's win is indicative of the program Union Springs has.
“It shows how good our art program is here for such a small school.”
The man is her grandfather, and she endearingly titled the drawing “Gramps.”
“A couple of years ago my grandfather was very ill, and I just wanted to show him respect and how much I love him by drawing a picture of him,” said Quill, 16, of Aurelius.
Quill, a sophomore at Union Springs High School, submitted “Gramps” to the Scholastic Art Awards and won a Gold Key at the regional level. Never did she imagine that her drawing would turn heads at the national level.
That is until she received a letter not too long ago telling her that she had won a national Gold Award through the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards.
She said the letter was confusing after the first couple of reads, as she thought Scholastic was informing her of her regional win.
“I read it a lot and eventually my dad said, 'I guess you got it,'” she said. “It was a shock.”
Joel Terry couldn't breathe when he got his letter.
“It knocked me off my feet,” he said. “I didn't even believe it. I called my teacher at 9 in the evening, I couldn't really talk because I was so excited.”
Terry, 18, of Union Springs, won his Gold Award for “Hallelujah,” a colored pencil drawing of a preacher standing before a Bible. “Hallelujah” won Terry one of two regional Gold Keys this winter with the second key for “Laid to Rest,” a still life drawing of a duck decoy. “Laid to Rest” also won an American Visions Award, part of the Scholastic Art Awards, which is given to the top five Gold Key winners in the art competition.
“My goal was to get a Gold Key at the regional level,” he said. “I got two Gold Keys and an American Vision Award. I was blown away and very honored at getting the national award. It was a whole other level.”
Scholastic's selection process is very competitive, Union Springs art teacher Jason Charles said. Only about 500 individual works of art receive awards at the national level.
Union Springs students have garnered national Silver Awards in the past, he said, but never before has the high school seen gold.
“To get two of them, it was an absolute shock to me,” Charles said.
“I feel very blessed that our school is so fortunate and the students work hard,” he later added. “I attribute a lot of the success to their hard work.”
On June 5, Quill, Terry and Charles will travel to New York City to formerly be recognized at the National Awards Celebration and The National Exhibition of The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards.
For Terry, the duo's win is indicative of the program Union Springs has.
“It shows how good our art program is here for such a small school.”
