District 99 students achieve top honors in the annual Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

By Valerie Hardy

Most teenagers take a fine arts class only because it’s a high school graduation requirement. Likewise, most teens only write when assigned, with their primary goal being to earn a particular grade. However, Aili Flannery and Ananya Kharat aren’t most teens.

These recent Downers Grove South graduates create by choice, and their passion-fueled pursuits have paid off. Members of the Class of 2026, Flannery and Kharat received national recognition through this year’s Scholastic Art & Writing Awards program, joining a longstanding line of distinguished young artists and authors.

Out of over 100,000 submissions, Flannery’s “Process” sculpture earned a Gold Medal, the highest level of distinction within the Scholastic Art Awards. Flannery completed this piece under the instruction of Janet Taylor, a visual arts teacher at South.

Meanwhile, Kharat was one of only eight students nationwide to earn a Gold Medal Portfolio Award for her writing. She submitted three poems, two pieces of prose, and one flash fiction piece, and her portfolio – entitled “It’s killing me, Illinois” and which can be viewed at www.artandwriting.org/gallery/07fc49ea-9ca8-489b-90d3-648899743d0 – was selected out of more than 700 submissions. The ensuing award included a $12,500 scholarship.

“No matter where life takes me, I know I’ll always be a writer.”

– Ananya Kharat

Kharat explained that the road to gold wasn’t a short one: “I had been determined to get this award for over a year before applying to it, so I’m glad my hard work paid off.”

For Flannery, the foundation for her award-winning piece began in her childhood. “I have always created art…whether it was sculpting out of Play-Doh or coloring,” she said. But she often struggled to celebrate her work. Flannery explained, “I’ve always had a hard time being proud of my achievements, so when I got this award, I didn’t really know what to do.”

So, she texted her parents then went to find Ms. Taylor to share the celebratory news. “We both started tearing up, and I think seeing how proud she was of me made me more proud of myself.”

And this pride is well warranted. The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are the longest-running recognition program for creative teens in the nation and also considered the most prestigious. Students in grades 7-12 can apply for 29 distinct categories of art and writing, and their entries are judged by luminaries in the visual and literary arts.

Top Scholastic award and scholarship winners, along with their educators and families, are invited to a national ceremony in New York City. The 2026 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards ceremony was held on June 10 at Carnegie Hall. Kharat attended, but Flannery had a conflict with a previously planned family trip.

That said, this is just the beginning of Flannery’s art journey. She said she will be studying art education at Illinois State University, hoping to become an “art teacher who hopefully inspires students as much as my teachers inspired me.” She is also committed to continuing to create just for fun or as gifts for family and friends.

Kharat will also continue her craft beyond high school – but as a complement to her major in Information and Data Science at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. She hopes to join UIUC’s newspaper and literary magazine staff and is currently working on a novel as well as a chapbook of poetry. “I’ll keep writing in my personal life and will probably publish even more of my work,” Kharat said. “No matter where life takes me, I know I’ll always be a writer.”

In addition to Flannery and Kharat, two other District 99 students also received Scholastic awards. Recently graduated Downers Grove North seniors Isaac Janusauskas and Dashiell McNamara Speir both earned Silver Medals for their submissions. Janusauskas was recognized in the jewelry category for the piece “Where Did the Time Go?” with guidance from art teacher Robyn Bican and McNamara Speir in drawing for “Frenzied Whit” under the mentorship of art teacher Marty Voelker. 

Left: Aili Flannery displays a collection of her creations before graduating from Downers Grove South High School.
Right: Anaya Kharat is recognized on South High’s marquee sign for receiving a Scholastic Award for her writing portfolio.