Every year, thousands of students send in their original works to the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) Reflections Art Program. All students 18 or under can submit their interpretations of the theme, which varies year to year. This year, PTA introduced a simple yet compelling prompt for young artists: “I Will Change The World By…” The contest, which has been running annually since 1969, allows for various entries adhering to 6 areas: Dance Choreography, Literature, Music Composition, Film Production, Visual Arts, and Photography. 

Though Arcadia High School  had over 30 entries this year, only the top three from each category were chosen. They were (as follows):

Film:

1st: Weber Lin

2nd: Anvitha Marlapati

Literature:

1st: Lauren Nieto

2nd: Weber Lin

3rd: Mya Barr

Music Composition:

1st: Arnav Kaartik Numarsu

2nd: Ashlee Sung

3rd: Jessica Tanujaya

Photography:

1st: Sophia Araki-Chew

2nd: Sean Wang

3rd: Joshua Sujo

Visual Arts:

1st: Katie Tsui

2nd: Iris Xu

3rd: Sydney Tien

Senior Mya Barr submitted a short story titled “Forgiveness in A Sky Full Of Stars” that won third place for the category of literature. Though the prompt allowed for broad interpretation, Barr kept the story a little more personal.

“My submission was about a girl and her inner battle with her emotions and dealing with friendship,” said Barr. “The story relates to the theme as she states she’ll change her own world first–forgiving those in her life and letting go of those negative emotions. It’s not changing the whole world…but she’ll build up to how we can all change the world with forgiveness.”

Similarly, junior Weber Lin submitted two pieces that centered around personal improvement and goals. His submission for literature won second place, while his film submission won first.

“Since the theme was ‘I Will Change The World By…’, I basically wrote a little bit about small steps I’ve taken to make things better, what I’m currently doing, and then what I hope to do in the future,” said Lin. In his video, titled One Step At a Time, Lin “practiced [his] speaking skills and discussed those topics in front of a camera.”

The first place winners in each category will now have their works sent to the California PTA Council for further judging. Pieces that are deemed “Outstanding Interpretation” may be given the chance to be recognized at the National PTA Convention. To all the students who have made it this far, Congratulations! 

Photo courtesy of AUSD