Three MMI seniors receive Scholastic Writing Awards
Adam Tron won a Gold Key in the Personal Essay & Memoir category for “The Dichotomy of Masculinity and Femininity” and will advance to the national awards competition. Gold Keys are awarded to the very best works submitted to Region-at-Large programs and are automatically considered for national-level recognition.
Paige Machulsky received an Honorable Mention in Poetry for “A Tourist’s Sehnsucht” and Maya Rizkalla was awarded an Honorable Mention in the Critical Essay category for “Police Brutality.”
The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are the nation’s longest-running and most prestigious recognition program for creative teens in grades 7–12. Each year, teens in grades 7–12 (ages 13 and up) apply in 29 categories of art and writing. In 2019, students submitted nearly 340,000 works of art and writing to the Scholastic Awards.
Submissions are juried by luminaries in the visual and literary arts, some of whom are past award recipients. Panelists look for works that best exemplify originality, technical skill, and the emergence of a personal voice or vision. Students receiving Gold Keys, Silver Keys, Honorable Mentions, or American Voices & Visions Nominations are celebrated within their communities through local exhibitions and ceremonies. Gold Key works are then judged nationally by an impressive panel of creative–industry experts to receive National Medals.
For the Personal Essay & Memoir category, students may submit a non-fiction work based on opinion, experience, and/or emotion that explores a topic or event of importance to the author. For Poetry, students can enter writing in verse. Entries may include, but are not limited to: prose poetry, free verse, formal poetry, song lyrics, and spoken word. Each submission may consist of between one and five poems, which will be judged as a collection. The Critical Essay category includes writing between 500 and 3,000 words that is intended to inform or convince a reader about a specific idea or topic, such as art or media reviews, persuasive essays, and opinion essays. Sources must be cited.
Adam Tron is the son of Dr. Eduardo Tron and Dr. Graciela Bianco of Mountaintop. Paige Machulsky is the daughter of David and Renee Machulsky of White Haven. Maya Rizkalla is the daughter of Sandra Rizkalla of Freeland and George Rizkalla of Wilkes-Barre.
Pictured: MMI Preparatory School seniors Adam Tron, Paige Machulsky, and Maya Rizkalla received recognition in the Scholastic Writing Awards. Pictured are, from left: Adam Tron, advisor Jennifer Novotney, and Paige Machulsky. Missing from photo: Maya Rizkalla.
About MMI Preparatory School
For 140 years, MMI Preparatory School has been providing dedicated area students with a comprehensive and inspiring 6th through 12th grade college preparatory program that maximizes each individual’s academic, social, and character potential in preparation for success in college and beyond. The school is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools (MSA-CESS). MMI is a school where every student can reach their full potential: academically, ethically, and socially. For more information about MMI Preparatory School, visit www.mmiprep.org or call 570-636-1108.