Freedom 250 and National Endowment for the Humanities Announce State and Territory Winners of National American Heroes Student Art Contest
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Freedom 250 and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) recognized state and territory winners of the American Heroes Student Art Contest, a nationwide competition inviting students to reflect on the individuals, moments, and ideals that have shaped the American story.
From “The Man Who Lit America” honoring Thomas Edison, to “Ride, Sally Ride” celebrating America's pioneering astronaut, to “The Light of Truth: A Tribute to Ida B.Wells-Barnett” and “Elvis Presley: The Patriotic King,” students from across the country showcased their creativity and appreciation for the heroes who have helped define our nation.
As America prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, honoring the men and women whose courage, innovation, sacrifice, and leadership have strengthened our country remains a central part of the commemoration. Through their artwork and artist statements, these students have helped bring those stories to life for a new generation.
An exhibition of more than 130 state and territory winning artworks and essays will be on view at the Great American State Fair, in the American Canvas Pavilion, from June 25 through July 10.
Regional and national winners of the American Heroes Student Art Contest will be announced at an Awards Ceremony on July 8 in Washington, D.C.
State and Territory Winners and Award-Winning Artwork
ELEMENTARY: Grades 3-5
Alabama — Emma Grace Hjelm, "Oakville's Hero"
Alaska — Hulda Elisabeth Cox, "Freedom at Last"
Arizona — Quinn Thyfault, "Louis Armstrong"
Arkansas — Bailey Pacheco, "The Journey"
California — Roy Kim, "The Spark of Ideas"
Colorado — Deborah Reifschneider, "Desmond Doss at Hacksaw Ridge"
Connecticut — Mika Amzallag-Yeger, "Peaceful and Hopeful Heroine"
Florida — Sophia Vanlandingham, "The Man Who Lit America"
Georgia — Vedika Patel, "First Footprints on the Moon"
Idaho — Josie Starr, "Beyond the Stars"
Illinois — Faustina Irene Lasnoski, "Birthday Celebration"
Indiana — Cecilia Chrisman, "Amelia Earhart"
Iowa — Shambhavi Singh, "Harriet Tubman – Leader of Freedom"
Kansas — Isabelle Menard, "Johnny Appleseed"
Kentucky — Jackson Wheeler, "Edwin Hubble"
Louisiana — Lilah Olivia Covher, "Red, Flight, and Flew"
Maine — Odin S. Labonte, "The American Man"
Maryland — Ruthie Deininger, "Jazz at Camp"
Massachusetts — Yunqi Cai, "Chasing the Light - Tesla"
Michigan — Elise Cook, "The Ross Home on a Summer Day"
Mississippi — Annie McCoy, "Sojourner Truth"
Missouri — Daniel Fronick, "Hit it Hard!"
Montana — Mya Schatzel, "Lincoln's Legacy"
Nebraska — Clara Fehringer, "Light through the Darkness"
Nevada — Anabelle Pennington, "Sacagawea's View"
New Hampshire — Tucker Knightly, "Underground Captains Meet"
New Jersey — Sophia Heeyoung Lim, "A Seat of Courage"
New Mexico — Mila Enrico, "Peace and Slavery"
New York — Raeanna Smith, "The Holy Man"
North Carolina — Gracyn Dudding, "Ansel Adams' Impressions"
Ohio — Madalynn Gould, "William Clark"
Oklahoma — Jana Sparks, "The Bird Collage"
Pennsylvania — Mika Sameroff, "American Hero: Betsy Ross"
Rhode Island — Lucy Agresti, "The Sky is Not the Limit"
South Carolina — Theodore Brown, "Doolittle's Daring Attack"
South Dakota — Roselle Hollie Grabitske, "The Trumpet of Louis Armstrong"
Tennessee — Brendan Hennessey, "Strike Out Racism: Jackie Robinson"
Texas — Jiyun Kim, "Her World Beyond Sight and Sound"
Utah — Elizabeth Black, "Boston Massacre Recreated"
Vermont — Cora Mier, "Sacagawea's Glow"
Virginia — Sheyda Webster, "Remember the Ladies"
Washington — Arliss Clack, "Siege of Vicksburg"
Washington, D.C. — Claire Henger, "Culture and Cuisine"
West Virginia — Ezra VanScoy, "250 Lincolns"
Wisconsin — Mila Kavelaris, "Johnny Cash – Man in Black"
MIDDLE SCHOOL: Grades 6-8
Alabama — Leighton Medlin, "Good Ol' Blue Eyes"
Alaska — Konnor J. Kiddle, "Neil's View"
Arizona — Aaratrika Mohanti, "The Light of Truth: A Tribute to Ida B. Wells-Barnett"
Lucas Lobo, "United Heroes"
California — Aadya Janesh, "Her Sky, Her Story"
Colorado — Seaton Wood, "Walt and Mickey Go for a Ride"
Connecticut — Emma Marzullo, "Freedom Calling"
Florida — Lexi Weaver, "Midnight Ride"
Georgia — Ellen Templeton, "Freedom in his Sight"
Hawaii — Adrianna Tran, "Walt Disney"
Idaho — Jimmy Chen, "Neil Armstrong: Small Step, Large Leap"
Illinois — Ziyang Ma, "Honoring Audubon"
Indiana — Mya Jones, "True American Hero"
Iowa — Annalee E Kos, "May-Flower"
Kansas — Austyn Hall, "Harriet Beecher Stowe"
Kentucky — Amber Bernard, "Kobe Bryant Looking Toward"
Louisiana — Bailey Allison, "Lady Lindy"
Maine — Luke Lord, "Trust Your Intuition"
Maryland — Maria Mills, "Dr. Seuss"
Massachusetts — Iris Zhuo-Li, "In the Reflection"
Michigan — Olivia Carol Heiler, "Sally Ride"
Minnesota — Tate Kramer, "The Inventions of Benjamin Franklin"
Mississippi — Truenne Speck, "Service to My Country"
Missouri — Liliana Esparza, "Midnight Pop"
Montana — Emery Penner, "Nikola Tesla"
Nebraska — Violet Crowder, "At First Glimpse"
Nevada — Sophia Skeehan, "Elizabeth's Death"
New Jersey — Sarang Lee, "The Sound that Became America"
New Mexico — Ysobella G Depala, "The Future of History"
New York — Amber Wang, "Please Lord, Help Me Get One More"
North Carolina — Solomon Brulet, "Through Darkness Comes Freedom"
North Dakota — Eva Szklarski, "Math to the Moon"
Ohio — Nandita Seshadri, "Amelia Earhart"
Oklahoma — Gordon Bryan, "John Wayne"
Pennsylvania — Adrianna Jane Hardison, "Painting the Dream"
South Carolina — Penny Lattimore, "Our Faithful Hero"
South Dakota — Jessa Van Zee, "Walt Disney"
Tennessee — Minchan Kang, "Battle of Mobile Bay: David Farragut"
Texas — Amelia Rose Frizzell, "The Voice for New Beginnings"
Utah — Liam Gustavson, "He's Got the Wright Stuff"
Virginia — Laurie Ma, "Dr. Seuss"
Washington — Catherine Li, "Albert Einstein"
West Virginia — Izabella King, "Davey Crockett"
Wisconsin — Hosanna Peterson, "Gabby Gabreski: Ace of the Skies"
Wyoming — Faith R. Gomez, "A Brave Educator"
HIGH SCHOOL: 9-12
Alabama — Aspyn Speake, "Elvis Presley: The Patriotic King"
Arizona — Hannah Lofgren, "Mayo Family Legacy"
Arkansas — Madeline Phillips, "Ride, Sally Ride"
California — Alyssa Liu, "Clara Barton"
Colorado — Charlize K. Wardle, "Buffalo Bill – The Face of the Frontier"
Connecticut — Halana Ann Crowley, "Man in Black"
Delaware — Abigail M. Lyons, "Signs of Life"
Florida — Britian Major, "Unite Them"
Georgia — Mia Elizabeth Cossick, "One More"
Illinois — Lilia Gregg, "The Conductor"
Indiana — Liberty McDowell, "This Union Shall Endure"
Kentucky — Bryson Andrew Snawder, "Edgar Allen Poe"
Louisiana — Hailey Hudson, "Behind the Hero"
Maine — Margaret R. Lynch, "Explorers of the New Frontier"
Maryland — Etian Huang, "Admiral Gordon Chung-Hoon"
Massachusetts — Samantha Wiggin, "America Embodied: A Portrait of Theodore Roosevelt"
Michigan — Madison Imus, "Jesse Owens: American Olympic Inspiration"
Minnesota — Aiden Schneider, "Reagan"
Mississippi — Hailey Beth Boland, "To the Moon and Back"
Missouri — Dylan Stewart, "The Little Colonel"
Montana — Asher Hudson, "Good Night, Dear Heart"
Nebraska — Jewel Denker, "Finite Peace"
Nevada — Xavier Roodhouse, "Shattering the Sun"
New Jersey — Serena Jung, "Rough Rider"
New Mexico — Ibnijah Guerro, "Lincoln"
New York — Maggie Jiang, "Teddy"
North Carolina — Caleigh Conlin, "Carolton's Ride"
North Dakota — Kinsee Huntimer, "Feathered Indian"
Northern Mariana Islands — Jihun Park, "Just Hope"
Ohio — Emma Liu, "The Conductor of Light"
Oklahoma — Jonathan Riddle, "Golden Swan of the Osage"
Oregon — Savanna Marcle, "Sit and Wait"
Pennsylvania — Solomiia Zhukova, "All Men are Created Equal"
South Carolina — Ruiwen Zhong, "Glory"
South Dakota — Daniel R. Grabitske, "The Defender of Little Roundtop"
Tennessee — Genesis Maier, "Kin-Ya-Onny-Beyeh"
Texas — Rebecca Smith, "General Dwight D. Eisenhower"
United States Virgin Islands — J'Leah Arielle Connor, "ˈhɪst̬ɚri"
Utah — Jade Weeks, "Rugged Endurance"
Virginia — Sadie Springhetti, "Partners"
Washington — Clair Shipley, "Mother of the West"
Wisconsin — Amy Osborne, "Mark Twain"
About the American Heroes Student Art Contest
The American Heroes Student Art Contest, which closed for submissions on June 1, invited students across the nation to explore and depict the individuals, events, and ideals that have shaped America’s history. Students were asked to choose one historical figure from the list of approximately 250 to be honored in the soon-coming National Garden of American Heroes and to create two-dimensional, original, handmade artworks and artist statements. Participants could choose to depict the historical American hero as a portrait, or the ideas, themes, places, symbols, or cultural practices associated with the individual. The contest encouraged students to integrate the influence of an American art movement or known artist as inspiration for their work. The artist statement essay questions asked students to reflect on why the historical figure matters to them and to the nation.
In the first round of judging, a panel of nine artists, art historians, and arts educators served as judges to review and score over 1,000 entries based on a rubric rating system, determining state and territory winners in each age category. In the second round of judging, a panel of Freedom 250 and NEH judges determined fifteen regional winners. In the final round, a small panel of distinguished judges, including Second Lady Usha Vance, will determine the national winners. State and territory winners and one parent or guardian will receive a trip to Washington, DC, July 7-9, and will be honored in a Student Art Exhibition at the Great American State Fair and at an Awards Ceremony. The contest is part of the nationwide commemoration of America’s 250th anniversary and encourages young Americans to engage with the nation’s past through artistic expression and historical reflection.
About Freedom 250
Freedom 250 is the national, non-partisan organization leading the celebration of our Nation's 250th birthday. Working together with the White House Task Force 250, federal agencies, and the Commission, Freedom 250 serves as the official public-private partnership that connects, aligns, and amplifies national and local efforts to deliver the defining presidential moments and signature events of this anniversary year.
For more information or to join the movement, visit Freedom250.org.
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