MSA Alumni parent and philanthropist Elizabeth Nielsen is pleased to announce the recipients of this semester‘s MSA Opportunity and Experience grants. The Fund was able to offer additional awards this semester thanks to participation from a new funding partner, the Aragon Foundation who generously contributed towards the fund to meet the growing demand for support by dedicated MSA students. MSA is exceedingly grateful for their support.
“We have never had such strong candidates or so many applicants in the two years since we’ve started the fund. It really was tremendously inspiring and challenging to find a way to try to meet at least some of the needs of our talented group,” Nielsen said.
Rylie Powell (Creative Writing, Drawing & Painting, ’27): Grant awarded to attend The New York Times summer intensive journalism program. Rylie has received extensive awards and notice for her writing ability, including a Scholastic Art & Writing national award. What makes her acceptance to the New York Times summer program so remarkable is that she did this without being able to participate in a high school journalistic program since Novato High School no longer has one. It’s a true tribute to her ability and her determination.
Kara Schutz (Photography, Creative Writing, ’26): Grant awarded towards an appropriately, professional camera, and lens to continue her exploration of photography in theater settings. Kara‘s talent has already presented itself with her photographs, featured twice in the Youth in Arts Rising Stars gallery, Bank of Marin calendar, and having photos taken for theatrical productions, both at MSA and with Novato Theater Company, and Marin Ballet featured in print. She is dedicated to pursuing theatrical photography, which is a particularly challenging field and requires special equipment. She plans to take her camera, a Canon EOS R6, onto college, where she plans not only to continue her photographic work, but also volunteering to introduce Photography to the next generation.
Jackie Barr (Creative Writing, Theatre, ’27): Grant awarded towards tuition to attend the SUTE theater arts program for musical theater training. Jackie has been consistently involved in MSA theater, and with California Theatre Conservatory where he recently portrayed Curly in Oklahoma. He’s looking to improve his skills, particularly his auditioning skills, as he heads toward the audition process both for college and professional work. This program also introduces him to professionals who can provide connections to the industry.
Eden Dunn (Instrumental Music, Theatre, ’27): Grant awarded towards tuition to attend Stanford University Jazz Institute Summer Intensive. Eden‘s outstanding contribution to MSA both as a pianist and music director/conductor has made an impression across the Jazz, Musical Theater, and Advanced Rock Band programs. Most recently, he was the music director for Oklahoma at California Theatre Conservatory. He has also performed at senior homes as part of LITA, Novato, Rotary club, Marin Country Club, art gallery openings, and at Novato‘s Fourth of July parade. Eden‘s ambitions are to attend college for music and become a professional working musician. He is well on his way!
Ryan Deloy Benavides Martinez (Cinematic Arts, ’27): Grant awarded towards tuition for a screenwriting program at SOCAPA in Manhattan, New York, or at either the 48 Hills Film Camp or Bay Area Young Person’s Film Program. Ryan has been accepted to all three and needs to see what will work best for him and his family. He has had films appear in the MSA Really Big Film Festival for the past two years and also is a member of the Student Television Network and Student Leadership Council. He recently received an internship from the Museum of the American Indian and will be creating a movie trailer for them. He has also created a YouTube channel focused on mental well-being. He wants to attend the summer program to strengthen his screenwriting skills by learning how to write clearer and more compelling scripts and understand the structure of an effective story. It will also expose him to professional feedback and critique from members of the film industry.
Frances Sveinson (Creative Writing, Sculpture, ’27): Grant awarded towards tuition for the creative writing program sponsored by CIEE High School Summer Abroad Program in Edinburgh, Scotland. Frances is a TA for the freshman creative writing program at MSA and plans to be an editor for the literature magazine next semester. She also competed in the first and second levels of Poetry OutLoud, a nationwide poetry competition. As someone on the spectrum, Frances has worked hard to overcome her challenges of sensory over stimulation and push herself to uncomfortable places in order to grow as both a writer and a person. The program she has picked will enable her to be part of a writing group concentrating not only on their own craft, but studying the rich history of writing within Edinburgh from the 18th century on, and participating in the international writing festival and conference.
Avery McDermott (Creative Writing, Digital Arts & Animation, ’28): Grant awarded towards a new drawing tablet and set of DJI mini mics used for developing her YouTube animation series. Her presentation was quite extraordinary. She has vision, determination, and a strong work ethic. The demands for achieving the quality she needs to continue her series far outstrip her current economic circumstances. This grant will help her develop the series and be able to market it appropriately across the social media spectrum. Avery is currently active in Digital Arts/Animation, Creative Writing, Cinematic Arts and Photography. She has created a team with two other teens who really hope to make an impact in the field.
Makenna Ridler-Coons (Dance, ’28): Aragon Foundation gift awarded towards tuition for the Roco Launch Summer Dance Intensive. Makenna has been working steadily towards acceptance in the MSA Advanced Dance program at MSA. She has not had the opportunity to get some of the grounding, technical dance skills, particularly in ballet, that she needs to achieve her goals. After advice on appropriate programs, this particular program appears best suited to her needs and her family circumstances. She has participated in competition with Splitz Dance Academy for years as well as in the MSA Intermediate Dance Program. She was also selected for an internship this summer as an assistant teacher in a dance program for under served youth in the Canal District. Makenna‘s determination and drive as well as her moving application, made her an exceptionally worthy candidate for a grant as a 10th grader. We are delighted that Aragon foundation can support her in her goals and thank them greatly.
Bradleigh Hannah (Dance, Theatre, ’28): Aragon Foundation gift awarded towards tuition to attend the California State Summer School for the Arts, CSSSA, in theater. A highly selective arts program, we were impressed that Bradleigh was selected as a 10th grader, and she has been consistently active in virtually every production at MSA while a student, either on the stage or behind the scenes. This opportunity will permit her not only to learn skills, but to really grow as an artist on the stage, whether she is involved in musical theater or straight theater. We thank Aragon foundation for this generous assistance as the tuition is not cheap, and the program has been a stepping ground for so much developed talent in California.
Thank you to all who applied and congratulations to this semester’s grantees. The fund will open for new applications early in the fall semester with a mid-November application deadline.