Highest Honor Bestowed to Talented High School Seniors from 23 States and Representing 10 Artistic Disciplines
MIAMI, FL (January 20, 2022) – YoungArts announced today the nominees for the 2022 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students who exemplify artistic and academic excellence. YoungArts is the sole nominating agency for this high honor, and the 60 candidates, representing 23 states and 10 artistic disciplines, are all YoungArts award winners. The students have been nominated to the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program following the first week of National YoungArts Week+, the virtual adaptation of the organization’s annual signature program, National YoungArts Week. Open to YoungArts award winners at the Finalist level, 2022 National YoungArts Week+ included virtual classes and workshops during which the artists were further evaluated for nomination to the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program. From January 29 to February 4, National YoungArts Week+ programming continues with streamed performances, writers’ readings, film screenings and an online exhibition, allowing audiences across the country opportunities to meet and experience these outstanding artists and their work.
All completed and submitted U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts applications will be reviewed by the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars. The Commission will ultimately select 20 high school seniors to be recognized as U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts for their academic and artistic accomplishments, demonstrated leadership, community service and outreach initiatives, and overall creativity.
“It is with great pride that YoungArts nominates these 60 extraordinary artists to the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars,” said Lauren Snelling, Artistic Director. “These artists have navigated the challenges of the past year with grace, creativity and dedication to their craft. It gives us hope to see how these young artists have channeled the uncertainty we have all felt into their work. We are all excited to watch and support these artists as they grow and evolve on their artistic journeys.”
The 2022 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts nominees are:
| Name | Hometown City, State | School | YoungArts Winner Year and Discipline |
| Madeline Alemi | Egg Harbor Township, NJ | Chartertech High School | Theater, 2022 |
| Leah Amory | New York, NY | Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts | Classical Music, 2021 |
| Ayana Askew | Norfolk, VA | Booker T. Washington Senior High School | Writing, 2022 |
| Andrew Bakun | Beaverton, OR | Mountainside High School | Theater, 2022 |
| Caroline Berthin | Miami, FL | Design and Architecture Senior High School | Visual Arts, 2022 |
| Joshua Brown | Interlochen, MI | Interlochen Arts Academy | Theater, 2022 |
| Quoc Bui | Interlochen, MI | Interlochen Arts Academy | Visual Arts, 2021 |
| Christian Burse | Frisco, TX | Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts | Dance, 2021 |
| Eva Soryn Call | Peachtree City, GA | McIntosh High School | Design Arts, 2021 |
| Madeleine Case | Woodland Hills, CA | Viewpoint School | Writing, 2022 |
| Emmy Cheung | Irvine, CA | Orange County School of the Arts | Dance, 2022 |
| Glenn Choe | Cedar Park, TX | Vista Ridge High School | Classical Music, 2022 |
| Samuel Correa | Hollywood, FL | West Broward High School | Film, 2022 |
| William Cummins | Mansfield, OH | Homeschool | Classical Music, 2022 |
| Youjaye Daniels | Rock Hill, SC | South Carolina Governor’s school for the Arts and Humanities | Writing, 2022 |
| Saman de Silva | Los Altos Hills, CA | Henry M. Gunn Senior High School | Voice, 2022 |
| Ryan Diaz-Rousselot | Miami, FL | Design Architecture Senior High | Film, 2022 |
| Ava Ditto | San Antonio, TX | Legacy of Educational Excellence High School | Film, 2022 |
| Ryan Evans | Wentzville, MO | Wentzville Holt High School | Dance, 2022 |
| Jamie Felix-Toll | Los Angeles, CA | Waverly School | Voice, 2022 |
| Zoe Goldemberg | Miami Beach, FL | Design and Architecture Senior High School | Design Arts, 2022 |
| Grace Gramins | Bronxville, NY | Bronxville High School | Voice, 2022 |
| Isabella Gueck | Grand Prairie, TX | Grand Prairie Fine Arts Academy | Voice, 2022 |
| Kaila Harunzade | Los Angeles, CA | Brentwood School | Photography, 2022 |
| Sara Homma | San Antonio, TX | TMI Episcopal | Visual Arts, 2022 |
| Youning Jiang | Irvine, CA | Orange County School of the Arts | Film, 2022 |
| Anya Jiménez | Brooklyn, NY | Professional Performing Arts School | Writing, 2022 |
| Grace Kaste | Seattle, WA | Roosevelt High School | Jazz, 2022 |
| Jessica Kodsi | Ooltewah, TN | Interlochen Arts Academy | Voice, 2022 |
| Maya Koenig | Arlington, VA | Washington-Liberty High School | Film, 2022 |
| Stella Lei | Paoli, PA | Conestoga High School | Writing, 2022 |
| Chelsie Lim | Cresskill, NJ | Academy of the Holy Angels | Classical Music, 2021 |
| Arayah Lyte | Country Club Hills, IL | The Chicago Academy for the Arts | Dance, 2022 |
| Jordin MacKenzie | Leawood, KS | Blue Valley North High School | Voice, 2022 |
| Tomek Marczewski | Dallas, TX | The St. Mark’s School of Texas | Design Arts, 2022 |
| Christian Moody | Columbia, SC | South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities | Theater, 2022 |
| Shikta Mukherjee | Edison, NJ | John P. Stevens High School | Voice, 2022 |
| Chinonye Omeirondi | Cypress, CA | Cypress High School | Writing, 2022 |
| Jaya Parker | Trotwood, OH | Stivers School for the Arts | Photography, 2022 |
| Eleanor Pimentel | Moscow, ID | Moscow High School | Design Arts, 2022 |
| Ella Reaugh | Lucas, TX | Lovejoy High School | Visual Arts, 2022 |
| Jayden Robinson | Montgomery, AL | Booker T. Washington Magnet High School | Photography, 2022 |
| Rodrigo Rodriguez Hernandez | Kissimmee, FL | Osceola County School for the Arts | Classical Music, 2022 |
| Isabelle Rogando | Arlington, VA | Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology | Writing, 2022 |
| Eason Rytter | New York, NY | Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts | Theater, 2022 |
| Anu Sahar | Baltimore, MD | Baltimore School of the Arts | Theater, 2022 |
| Maeve Sheehan | Staten Island, NY | Staten Island Technical High School | Film, 2022 |
| Malavika Singh | Salt Lake City, UT | West High School | Dance, 2022 |
| Sam Song | Campbell, CA | Westmont High School | Voice, 2022 |
| Reva Srivastava | Fremont, CA | Mission San Jose High School | Dance, 2022 |
| Megan Stuart | Minneapolis, MN | Oak Meadow School | Dance, 2022 |
| Miye Sugino | La Canada Flintridge, CA | La Canada High School | Visual Arts, 2022 |
| Grace Tapia | Woodhaven, NY | Repertory Company High School for Theatre Arts | Writing, 2022 |
| Benjamin Tucker | Tarzana, CA | Los Angeles County High School for the Arts | Film, 2022 |
| Madison Uphoff | Madison, WI | Madison West High School | Theater, 2020 |
| Eric Wang | San Jose, CA | Valley Christian High School | Classical Music, 2020 |
| Natalie Wang | Irvine, CA | Stanford Online High School | Writing, 2022 |
| Kailey Worontsoff | Wellington, FL | Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts | Dance, 2020 |
| Sean Yu | Rye, NY | Rye High School | Classical Music, 2022 |
| Adrian Zaragoza | Davis, CA | Davis Senior High School | Classical Music, 2022 |
* Interviews can be facilitated upon request.
The U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts nominees are actors, dancers, singers, songwriters, classical musicians, jazz musicians, photographers, filmmakers, visual artists, designers and writers. Once selected, the 2022 awardees will join a distinguished group of YoungArts and U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts alumni including Tony Award-nominated performer and choreographer Desmond Richardson; Los Angeles Music Center President Rachel S. Moore; novelist and National Book Award Finalist Allegra Goodman; Grammy Award-nominated violinist Jennifer Koh; BRAVO’s “Work of Art” winner Abdi Farah; OBIE Award-winning actress Donna Lynne Champlin; Tony Award-nominated choreographer and educator Camille A. Brown and RCA Records award-winning singer-songwriter and Grammy Award-nominated artist Chris Young.
The 2022 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts will be announced in the coming months. For additional information, please visit: http://www.ed.gov/psp
BECOMING A U.S. PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLAR IN THE ARTS
The first step to becoming a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts is to apply to YoungArts, which is the nominating agency for this honor. To be eligible for the YoungArts program, applicants must be 15–18 years old or in high school grades 10–12. To be further considered for a nomination as a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts, applicants must be high school seniors and meet all of the U.S. Presidential Scholars requirements.
YoungArts award winners demonstrating excellence in the performing, visual or literary arts are selected annually through a blind adjudication process. This year, 720 YoungArts award winners were selected. In January, 157 Finalists from across the nation were invited to National YoungArts Week+, where they participated in a week of intensive virtual classes and workshops with internationally renowned artists, and will share their work through virtual performances, readings, exhibitions and screenings that will be open to the public.
During National YoungArts Week+, eligible participants are further evaluated, award levels are determined, and nominations are made for that year’s U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts candidates. After a rigorous selection process, YoungArts nominates 60 candidates for an invitation to apply to the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program. Finally, the Commission on Presidential Scholars selects 20 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts each year.
ABOUT U.S. PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLARS
In 1964, the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program was established by executive order of President Lyndon B. Johnson to recognize and honor the nation’s top graduating high school seniors. In 1979, the program was extended to recognize students who demonstrated talent in the visual, creative and performing arts. In 2015, the program was again extended to recognize students who demonstrate ability and accomplishment in career and technical education fields.
Scholars are selected annually by the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars, appointed by the President, based on academic achievement, personal characteristics, leadership and service activities, and writing ability. This year, about 5,000 candidates qualified for the 2022 program determined by outstanding performance on the College Board SAT and ACT exams, through nominations made by Chief State School Officers, or other partner recognition programs or YoungArts.
Since its inception, the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program has honored almost 8,000 of the nation’s high-performing students. U.S. Presidential Scholars are honored for their accomplishments during the National Recognition Program each June. To commemorate their achievement, the Scholars are awarded the Presidential Scholars Medallion. The 161 2022 U.S. Presidential Scholars are comprised of one young man and one young woman from each state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and from U.S. families living abroad, as well as 15 chosen at-large, 20 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts, and 20 U.S. Presidential Scholars in Career and Technical Education.
