60 ASPIRING ARTISTS NOMINATED FOR
2018 U.S. PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLARS IN THE ARTS
Highest Honor Bestowed to Talented High School Seniors from
25 States and Representing 9 Artistic Disciplines
MIAMI, FL (January 31, 2018) –The National YoungArts Foundation (YoungArts) today announced the nominees for the 2018 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students who exemplify academic and artistic excellence. YoungArts is the sole nominating agency for this high honor and the 60 candidates, representing 25 states and nine artistic disciplines, are all YoungArts winners. The students have been nominated to the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program for their artistic achievement on the heels of the organization’s annual signature program, National YoungArts Week, which concluded in Miami on January 14.
The candidate applications will be reviewed by the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars, which 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. In June, the 20 arts scholars will join the other 141 U.S. Presidential Scholars from across the country in Washington, D.C. for theNational Recognition Program. During the program, all scholars receive a Presidential Medallion presented on behalf of the President of the United States and participate in several recognition activities while in Washington, D.C. The 2018 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts will present their work at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts through a special exhibition curated by YoungArts Exhibition Manager Luisa Munera, and a performance directed by YoungArts alumnus and Theater National Selection Panelist Michael McElroy (1985 Winner in Theater).
“The National YoungArts Foundation is proud to partner with the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program to acknowledge our nation’s most talented graduating high school seniors,” said Carolina García Jayaram, YoungArts President and CEO. “These young leaders excel in everything that they do, from their artistry and inquisitiveness, to their academics and activism. YoungArts congratulates each of the nominees on their accomplishments, and we look forward to announcing the selected arts scholars this spring.”
The 2018 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts nominees are:
| Name | School City, State | School | YoungArts Winner Year and Discipline |
| James Balo | Miami, FL | Design & Architecture Senior High School | 2018, Visual Arts |
| Lillian Benkoil | New York, NY | Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School for Music | 2018, Cinematic Arts |
| William Brandt | Los Angeles, CA | Alexander Hamilton High | 2017, Voice |
| Sydney Burtis | Kissimmee, FL | Homeschool | 2017, Dance |
| Willem Butler | Huntsville, AL | Virgil I. Grissom High School | 2018, Theater |
| Benjamin Champion | Idyllwild, CA | Idyllwild Arts Academy | 2018, Classical Music |
| Perry Chen | San Diego, CA | Canyon Crest Academy | 2018, Cinematic Arts |
| Aaron Choate | Lexington, KY | Lafayette Senior High School | 2018, Dance |
| Natalie Choo | Cincinnati, OH | Seven Hills School | 2018, Voice |
| Athena Chu | Watertown, MA | Buckingham Browne & Nichols School | 2018, Writing |
| Gabriel Costache | Interlochen, MI | Interlochen Arts Academy | 2018, Classical Music |
| Juliana Cuevas | Lake Elsinore, CA | Lakeside High School | 2018, Theater |
| Zoe D’Andrea | Santa Monica, CA | Santa Monica High School | 2018, Theater |
| Cyan D’Anjou | Atlanta, GA | The Westminster Schools | 2018, Visual Arts |
| Sophia Dion | Irwindale, CA | Opportunities for Learning – Baldwin Park | 2018, Voice |
| Audrey Emata | West Chester, PA | Pennsylvania Leadership Charter School | 2018, Classical Music |
| Melissa Fernandez-Flores | Miami, FL | New World School of the Arts | 2018, Visual Arts |
| Aidan Forster | Greenville, SC | South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities | 2018, Writing |
| Isabella Franco | Los Angeles, CA | Marlborough School | 2016, Dance |
| Nathan Ginter | Interlochen, MI | Interlochen Arts Academy | 2018, Cinematic Arts |
| Jayden Goldberg | Fort Worth, TX | Fort Worth Academy of Fine Arts | 2018, Voice |
| Elena Gonzalez | Miami, FL | New World School of the Arts | 2018, Theater |
| Ishmael Gonzalez | Miami, FL | New World School of the Arts | 2018, Theater |
| Claire Griffin | Brevard, NC | Brevard Senior High School | 2018, Voice |
| Vako Gvelesiani | New York, NY | Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts | 2018, Dance |
| Amal Haddad | Kensington, MD | Albert Einstein High School | 2018, Visual Arts |
| Francisco Haye | New York, NY | Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts | 2018, Voice |
| Jacqueline He | San Jose, CA | Harker School | 2017, Writing |
| Megan Hostetler | West Palm Beach, FL | Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts | 2018, Visual Arts |
| David Hou | Lincolnshire, IL | Adlai E. Stevenson High School | 2018, Classical Music |
| Christina Im | Portland, OR | Sunset High School | 2017, Writing |
| Christopher Jensen | Los Angeles, CA | Los Angeles County High School for the Arts | 2018, Theater |
| Taylor Kurtz | Temecula, CA | Great Oak High School | 2016, Dance |
| Lauren Lam | Lakeville, CT | The Hotchkiss School | 2018, Design Arts |
| Noah Lee | Ramsey, NJ | Don Bosco Preparatory High School | 2017, Classical Music |
| Sanna Legan | Santa Monica, CA | New Roads School | 2018, Visual Arts |
| Xavier Lightfoot | Milwaukee, WI | Pius XI High School | 2018, Photography |
| Leanne Lin | Miami, FL | Design and Architecture Senior High School | 2018, Design Arts |
| Anilee List | Los Angeles, CA | Los Angeles County High School for the Arts | 2017, Voice |
| Claire Manning | Boise, ID | Boise High School | 2018, Visual Arts |
| William McGregor | West Chester, PA | Pennsylvania Leadership Charter School | 2018, Classical Music |
| Shreyah Mohanselvan | Gahanna, OH | Columbus Academy | 2018, Dance |
| Perry Naseck | Dallas, TX | Saint Marks School of Texas | 2018, Design Arts |
| Jackson Neal | Sugar Land, TX | Stephen F. Austin High School | 2018, Writing |
| Oliver Neubauer | New York, NY | The Dalton School | 2018, Classical Music |
| Brian Niles | Los Angeles, CA | Los Angeles County High School for the Arts | 2018, Cinematic Arts |
| Liam Oh | Winnetka, IL | New Trier High School | 2018, Theater |
| Ameya Okamoto | Portland, OR | Catlin Gabel School | 2018, Visual Arts |
| Madelyn Paquette | Sudbury, MA | Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School | 2017, Voice |
| Emir Price | Dallas, TX | Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts | 2018, Theater |
| Julian Rhee | Brookfield, WI | Brookfield East High School | 2018, Classical Music |
| David Sacks | Stanford, CA | Stanford Online High School | 2017, Classical Music |
| Nicolas Savignon | Albuquerque, NM | Eldorado High School | 2018, Writing |
| Christian Smith | Las Vegas, NV | Las Vegas Academy of the Arts | 2018, Dance |
| Frances Timberlake | Cincinnati, OH | School for Creative and Performing Arts | 2018, Writing |
| Felipe Urrutia | Coconut Grove, FL | Ransom Everglades School | 2018, Photography |
| Jace Weyant | Winston Salem, NC | University of North Carolina School of the Arts | 2018, Dance |
| Liza Wimbish | Midlothian, VA | Midlothian High School | 2018, Photography |
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