Carnegie Hall 2015: Chelsea Clinton, Matthew Morrison, JennXPenn and more!

Next week, 900 creative teens from across the United States—national 2015 Scholastic Art & Writing Award winners—will gather in New York City with their teachers and families to attend a National Celebration in their honor, hosted by the nonprofit Alliance for Young Artists & Writers.

While they’re here, these students will participate in different events throughout Manhattan, including the opening of the Art.Write.Now.2015 National Exhibition, the annual benefit, the Empire State building being lit in gold, and of course… the National Ceremony at world-famous Carnegie Hall! Special guests Chelsea Clinton, Vice Chair of the Clinton Foundation; Emmy and Tony-nominated actor and star of Fox’s Glee Matthew Morrison; YouTube star Jennifer McAllister (also known as JennXPenn); and award-winning sculptor and an alumni of the Awards Donald Lipski will all be there to help celebrate these outstanding young artists and writers.

Mark your calendar! The full 2015 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards National Celebration schedule includes: 

• June 5 to 14 – Art.Write.Now.2015 National Exhibition: Free and open to the public, the Art.Write.Now.2015 National Exhibition at the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center at Parsons School of Design at The New School and Pratt Institute’s Pratt Manhattan Gallery will contain more than 1,000 Scholastic Art & Writing Award-winning visual and literary works. For many students, this will be the first public exhibition of their work as they walk in the footsteps of notable Awards alumni including Andy Warhol, Truman Capote and Sylvia Plath. More recent alumni include Stephen King, Richard Linklater, Zac Posen and Lena Dunham.

• June 10 – Art & Writing @ Night Annual Benefit: This annual fundraising event at the Metropolitan Pavilion recognizes the program’s 92-year-old legacy of supporting the vision, ingenuity and talent of our nation’s youth. All proceeds benefit the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.

• June 11 – National Ceremony at Carnegie Hall: National Scholastic Art & Writing Award winners will be honored at this inspiring ceremony at Carnegie Hall. Chelsea Clinton will make a keynote speech, sculptor Donald Lipski will be presented with this year’s Alumni Achievement Award, Matthew Morrison will present the Portfolio Gold Medalists, and for the first time ever, this special event has a new social media twist! Photos and messages from the winners tagged with #GoldKey will be featured throughout the show by social media correspondents Jennifer McAllister and Michelle Tan, Editor-in-Chief of Seventeen magazine.

• June 11 – Empire State Building Lit in Gold: In honor of the talented National Scholastic Art & Writing Award winners, the iconic Empire State Building will shine its tower lights in gold throughout the night.

• June 11 – Maker Prom: Students will also participate in a digital retro dance party. At this teen-only interactive event, co-presented by Hive NYC and the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, attendees will have the opportunity to hit the dance floor, create sonic portraits, print 3D frames and more.

• June 12 – Student Showcase: Throughout the day, student readings, art talks, film screenings and hands-on workshops will highlight student work while engaging audiences of all ages during the Student Showcase at the Art.Write.Now.2015 National Exhibition. This event will be free and open to the public during regular gallery hours at both the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center at Parsons School of Design at The New School and Pratt Institute’s Pratt Manhattan Gallery.

Will you be traveling to NYC for the National Celebration? Be sure to follow the Alliance on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, and share your thoughts using #GoldKey!