Earlier this year, the 2025 Chicago Region Scholastic Art Awards were released and 15 District 207 student artists earned an impressive 26 awards, including 11 Gold Key Awards, eight Silver Key Awards and seven Honorable Mentions. All Gold Key recipients had their work considered for national recognition.
From more than 560 award-winning submissions in the Chicago region, five pieces were selected for the prestigious “American Vision Nominee” distinction – an honor reserved for the best-of-show entries. Among the five from the Chicago region, two of them were works by Maine South students, Soren Lenzini (12th grade) and Nicole Scimeca (12th grade).
Last month, the national awards were announced. Soren Lenzini received three National Silver Medals for individual artistic work in photography. Soren also received a national Silver Medal with a $2000 cash prize for his portfolio for exceptional work in Photography and a $250 cash award for his educator, Mary Lee Moore.
Nicole Scimeca received a national Gold Medal for exceptional work in Film and Animation. Additionally, Nicole was the only recipient in the country to be awarded the “Flaunt It” Award. The “Flaunt It” Award is developed in collaboration with ‘Don’t Hide It, Flaunt It’ (DHIFI) and is supported by DHIFI, Inc., RBC Foundation USA, Morgan Stanley and Hewlett-Packard (HP). This award recognizes teens who look or feel different from their peers and share their personal story about what makes them unique. The “Flaunt It” Award includes two $2000 scholarships (one for art and one for writing) for the student recipient and a $500 cash award for her educator, Mason Strom.
Both students will have their work exhibited during National Scholastic Awards Week in New York City from June 9 through 13, 2025, with an awards ceremony held at Carnegie Hall.
“Both Nicole and Soren have flourished with their photography and video work under the instruction of Mary Lee Moore and Mason Strom,” shares Maine South Fine Arts Department Chair Dr. Teralyn Keith. “I am so proud to see these students receive such well-deserved recognition. Congratulations to these incredible students for sharing their artistic vision, and to their teachers for guiding them with passion and creativity.”
Additionally, Maine South Teachers Mason Strom and Mary Lee Moore both received National Educator Awards for their outstanding dedication to educating students to produce nationally recognized artwork.