Ethan Shi ’28
Feb 20, 2026
Each year, Mercersburg students participate in the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, a prestigious competition that allows young artists and writers to showcase their original work. This year, participants explored themes of culture, emotion, and experiences through a range of creative expressions, including photography, poetry, personal memoirs, and even short novels. Numerous students received recognition for the quality of their work. They all deserve commendation because, as Michele Poacelli, Head of the English Department, Writing Center Director, and writing coordinator for the awards, said, “Their willingness to submit personal and authentic work is what makes this competition so valuable.”
Kate Sui ’29 earned an Honorable Mention for Ginger Tea, a piece reflecting on living alone and abroad in London. She explained, “I wasn’t planning to submit until my teacher encouraged me… It gave me more confidence in writing personal stories.” She offered encouragement for the timid: “If you think you wrote a good piece, just share it—it’s going to end up good.”
The editing process may be stressful and time-consuming, but students note that it strengthens their work. Michelle Zhang ’28 wrote about her experience at an acupuncture clinic called Machine, Garden. She quickly cited, “editing,” as the most difficult part of the process. Rebecca Liu ’29, Gold Key winner for her poem Fishbones, said, “Editing is hard… I literally spent hours only revising with Poacelli.”
Another outstanding achievement was Carrie Yang’s ‘27 Porridge and the People We Become, which received a Gold Key and nomination for the American Voices award. Yang’s memoir explored the cultural significance of porridge and its connection to deeper bonds with her parents. “In my household, dinner was when my mom shared her emotions… Porridge became a symbol for grief and empathy, showing that we also need to care for our parents,” she said. The award boosted her confidence as a writer. “Getting that recognition is kind of like motivation. It’s a nice confirmation that I am doing something right, because I always think my writing is not good enough.”
Students commonly believe they must submit several pieces of work to increase their chances of receiving an award. However, Kristin Pixler, Head of the Arts Department and the school’s arts coordinator for the awards, suggests that students should carefully select and polish their works before submitting, instead of worrying over the number of submissions. She said, “Take that time to reflect on what makes those [works] the best three. Because that's a lot of self-critique, learning, and reflection. That's so important just as an artist.”
Many students who submitted work to Scholastic this year did not get recognized. To that, Pixler responded, “I guess the important thing, too, is to say that just because your work wasn't named by Scholastic, that says nothing about your worth, right? It says nothing about the strength of your writing.” Writing and art examinations are subjective, and students shouldn’t be regretful when they don't get recognized. Instead, they should celebrate the fact that they had enough courage to share a piece of themselves with the larger art and writing community.