Kirkwood High School Students Earn National Recognition for Excellence in Writing

Six students from Kirkwood High School have earned national recognition through the 2026 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Achievement Awards in Writing, a prestigious program honoring some of the top high school writers in the country. Students in Kirkwood High School’s AP Language & Composition program participate in the annual writing competition, which this year featured the prompt, The Joy and Power of Reading. Judges from across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Jamaica, and Taiwan evaluated submissions based on expression of ideas, language use, and unique perspective and voice.

Recognized KHS students include:

• Evelyn Elias — First Class
• Henrique Gomes — First Class
• Ava Whaley — Superior
• Daphne Wassel — Superior
• Leah Cradock — Superior
• Lylah Grothe — Superior

The NCTE Achievement Awards in Writing is a school-based writing program established in 1957 to encourage high school students to write and to recognize outstanding student writers nationwide. Only high school juniors are eligible to participate. Schools from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories, Canada, and American schools abroad may nominate students for consideration.

This year, 689 students were nominated for the Achievement Awards in the Writing Program. Students represented 38 states, Puerto Rico, Washington, D.C., and several countries, including Canada, Jamaica, Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, and Taiwan. Judges from across the United States and internationally evaluated submissions based on the expression of ideas, language use, and unique perspective and voice.

The National Council of Teachers of English is the nation’s largest organization dedicated to literacy and English language arts education, supporting more than 25,000 educators from prekindergarten through college levels.

For more information about the NCTE Achievement Awards in Writing, including past winners, vist http://www.ncte.org/awards/achievement-awards-in-writing/.