At Notre Dame Academy, creativity is both cultivated and celebrated — whether it takes shape through the written word or visual expression. This year, NDA students were recognized for their exceptional talent in the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, earning an impressive 110 awards across Gold, Silver and Honorable Mention distinctions in writing and visual art.
Student writers received honors in a wide range of categories, including poetry, personal essay and memoir, critical essay, short story, flash fiction, journalism and screenwriting. The scope of recognition reflects not only the depth of student talent, but also the strength of Notre Dame Academy’s writing program across grade levels and genres.
In addition to writing honors, NDA also celebrated success in visual art. One student artist earned a Silver Award for her Modern Art Analyses editorial cartoon, sponsored by The Herb Block Foundation. The recognition highlights excellence in visual storytelling and thoughtful social commentary, reinforcing the power of art as a meaningful form of expression and engagement.
“This level of achievement speaks to the confidence our students have in using their voices,” said Lisa Timmerding, principal of Notre Dame Academy. “Whether through writing or visual art, our students are encouraged to think deeply, express themselves authentically and engage the world with courage and purpose.”
Behind each award is a process rooted in mentorship, encouragement and academic rigor. Notre Dame Academy’s faculty, particularly within the English department, work closely with students to help them refine ideas, strengthen their voices and approach creative work with confidence.
As a Catholic school sponsored by the Sisters of Notre Dame, NDA is committed to forming the whole person — mind, heart and voice. The success of our student writers and artist in this year’s Scholastic Awards is a powerful reflection of that mission in action, demonstrating how creativity, critical thinking and faith-centered formation come together to prepare young women to make a difference in the world.
Gold Award Recipients
- Ryan Bennett – Personal Essay & Memoir – Surfing to Success
- Caroline Bohman – Short Story – Echoes of Silence
- Paige Conner – Flash Fiction – A Pale Blanket
- Blake Dougherty – Critical Essay – The Ethical Effect of Wealth: Connecting Behavioral Results of Opulence to Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby
- Lila Harris – Personal Essay & Memoir – Threading the Line
- Lila Harris – Critical Essay – How a New App Is Turning Sideline Stress Into a Smart Financial Strategy
- Abbey Hollenkamp – Short Story – The Flowers of Edo
- Giselle Horn – Poetry – If You Think of the Weather
- Lucie Kiely – Personal Essay & Memoir – Breath of Life
- Teagan Kruer – Personal Essay & Memoir – A Vivid Dream
- Riley Pope – Personal Essay & Memoir – A Simple Sandwich
- Chloe Schaeffer – Personal Essay & Memoir – Bale Me Out
- Ryan Scheiner – Personal Essay & Memoir – Patience
- Erin Scheuerle – Critical Essay – History of the Corruption of the American Dream
- Jocie Shrontz – Critical Essay – The Fight for Your Attention
- Kathryn Weber – Personal Essay & Memoir – Cleanliness Is Next to Godliness or IS IT?
- Leigh Wolff – Poetry – Wilted and Forgotten
- Sadie Yapp – Critical Essay – Go Greek! A Satirical Blog About Greek Life
- Abby Young – Personal Essay & Memoir – The Quadruple Launcher
Silver Award Recipients
- Finleigh Anderson – Critical Essay – Climate Change Affecting the World Through an Environmental Lens
- Ava Arnzen – Poetry – Someday, Somewhere
- Caroline Bohman – Poetry – Mourning of the Trees
- Caroline Brewer – Poetry – My Cherished Place
- Reagan Carman – Poetry – I’m the Poem
- Paige Conner – Personal Essay & Memoir – Screaming Vase
- Paige Conner – Poetry – America Bleeds
- Claire Gearing – Critical Essay – The Silver Lining of Climate Change
- Melissa Geiman – Editorial Cartoon – Modern Art Analyses (Art)
- Lilly Anne Greis – Personal Essay & Memoir – Choas
- Maclaine Hancock – Personal Essay & Memoir – A Hard Year
- Ava Holocher – Critical Essay – Ethical Aspect of the American Dream
- Lucy Kleman – Personal Essay & Memoir – The Path
- Sam Laws – Poetry – Almost
- Frances Maier – Critical Essay – Effect of Prohibition on America’s Economy
- Morgan Maselli – Personal Essay & Memoir – Yesterday
- Lilian Olexia – Critical Essay – Society’s Opinions on Recently Acquired Wealth
- Grace Rhea – Personal Essay & Memoir – Not the Year I Expected
- Kierstin Suedkamp – Critical Essay – More Than Words
- Juliana Von Wahlde – Personal Essay & Memoir – Island Time
- Sadie Yapp – Personal Essay & Memoir – A Cultish Mindset
Honorable Mention Recipients
- Ryan Bennett – Flash Fiction – Hidden in Plain Sight
- Stella Berger – Critical Essay – The Evolution of Wealth and the American Dream
- Stella Bitikofer – Personal Essay & Memoir – Rerouting
- Caroline Bohman – Poetry – Lost Souls
- Caroline Bramlage – Personal Essay & Memoir – A Child’s Suffering
- Reagan Carman – Poetry – My Pencil’s Name Is Tod
- Reagan Carman – Poetry – Midnight Sky
- Reagan Carman – Poetry – My Monarch Butterfly
- Nevaeh Carpenter – Personal Essay & Memoir – Quiet
- Finley Clifton – Critical Essay – Artificial Intelligence in Schools Through a Futuristic Lens
- Paige Conner – Portfolio (Writing) – Mosaic
- Paige Conner – Screenplays & Scripts – Capturing Cupid
- Paige Conner – Critical Essay – The Other Woman in a Man’s World
- Madelyn Dekker – Poetry – Therefore I Quit
- Hope Dierker – Personal Essay & Memoir – Becoming More of Myself
- Gia Dinkens – Poetry – Beneath the Shine
- Blake Dougherty – Poetry – Phantom of Sadness
- Blake Dougherty – Poetry – Scars
- Cleo Dozier – Journalism – Satire Journal Entry: Millennialism
- Kara Dugan – Speculative Fiction – The Girl With Enamel Eyes
- Maura Dwyer – Poetry – I Am His
- Ella Epplen – Personal Essay & Memoir – Starting New
- Graycey Everett-Osborne – Personal Essay & Memoir – Moments First, Milestones Second
- Annabelle Ficke – Poetry – Condemnation
- Caroline Foltz – Poetry – The Phantom’s Curse
- Linda France – Personal Essay & Memoir – From Ashes to Legacy
- Harper French – Poetry – Mawmaw’s House
- Sydney Gabbard – Personal Essay & Memoir – How I Found My Faith Through My Family and Friends
- Melissa Geiman – Poetry – “I Miss Thy Heart of Which Thee Take…”
- Melissa Geiman – Critical Essay – Ludwig Van Beethoven Annotative Bibliography
- Matilda Gerdes – Flash Fiction – Stars Kept in Jars
- Caroline Gollar – Poetry – All for One Goal
- Lila Harris – Poetry – Strands of Time
- Clare Herfel – Short Story – The Weight of a Promise
- Abbey Hollenkamp – Flash Fiction – No Regrets
- Abbey Hollenkamp – Flash Fiction – Apanchomene
- Abbey Hollenkamp – Poetry – Blindness
- Abbey Hollenkamp – Flash Fiction – An Elegy of Punishment
- Giselle Horn – Short Story – Where the Wildflowers End
- Giselle Horn – Screenplays & Scripts – The Watcher’s Window
- Rylee Huss – Personal Essay & Memoir – How Cancer Can Change Life
- Dara Jackson – Critical Essay – Benefits of Generational Wealth
- Isabella Johnson – Personal Essay & Memoir – College Application Essay
- Isabella Johnson – Portfolio (Writing) – Senior Portfolio
- Brooklyn Kelly – Personal Essay & Memoir – Unpredictable
- Josie Kramer – Short Story – Repentance
- Josie Kramer – Poetry – Disguise
- Iris Laile – Personal Essay & Memoir – Growing Up
- Paige Larkin – Poetry – Remembrance of Childhood Monsters
- Ruth Maier – Personal Essay & Memoir – Tears in My Quesadilla
- Morgan Maselli – Poetry – I Am Sorry
- Morgan Maselli – Poetry – Voices
- Isabella McElwee – Personal Essay & Memoir – The Courage to Find My Way
- Isabella McElwee – Poetry – Two Peas in a Pod
- Olivia Middendorf – Critical Essay – Economic Challenges in the American Dream
- Mia Moriarity – Critical Essay – The Strength of Corrie
- Camryn Peery – Personal Essay & Memoir – The Perfect Routine
- Erin Piatt – Personal Essay & Memoir – In the Now
- Emma Rebholz – Personal Essay & Memoir – My Moving Essay
- Makayla Roose – Poetry – When Day Becomes Night
- Ashlynn Ruyak – Poetry – Was It Time?
- Isabella Santos – Short Story – Poor Quinton
- McKenna Schneider – Short Story – Maid of the Manor
- Chloe Schreiber – Flash Fiction – The First Day
- Chloe Schreiber – Personal Essay & Memoir – Moving On
- Sabrina Scroggins – Poetry – Perfection… What a Lie
- Emmie Sheets – Poetry – Why’d He Leave?
- Kierstin Suedkamp – Critical Essay – Citizens Rejoice as Their “Utopia” Is Officially Acknowledged as a Country
- Bridget Warner – Flash Fiction – The Beauty in Chaos
- Kaitlyn Wert – Poetry – Where Is My America?