Herricks High School sophomore Aroob Jalil received a Silver Medal in the national round of the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards for her poetry, “The Symptoms of Humanity.” A portfolio comprised of four separate poems, the entry was awarded a Gold Key during the contest’s regional phase, which qualified it for the national level. There, it was deemed worthy of the Silver Medal, one of the highest levels of recognition presented through this program.
“I wanted to expose the negative sides of humanity and explain the different types of people that exist,” Aroob said of her work and the inspiration behind it. From that, she noted, readers could take valuable messages and be affected in positive ways.
Last year, as a freshman, she earned a Silver Key award for her poetry. She enjoys writing in and outside of school.
“Aroob is an exceptional thinker, and I love that her poetry is getting recognition like this,” said Alan Semerdjian, a teacher.
Presented by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards celebrates students’ vision, ingenuity and talent, and offers opportunities for recognition, exhibition, publication and scholarships. This year, students submitted nearly 350,000 works of art and writing to be adjudicated by luminaries in the visual and literary arts. Originality, technical skill and the emergence of a personal voice or vision were among the factors that contributed to a piece’s selection.
