Jennifer Garner, Chris Colfer and Lena Dunham to Headline 2020 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Virtual Ceremony

Though the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards is normally held at the world-famous Carnegie Hall, amid the novel coronavirus crisis, the ceremony is getting the virtual treatment with a few stars set to participate in the celebration.

Jennifer Garner, Lena Dunham and Glee star and author of The Land of Stories series Chris Colfer will congratulate the winners of the 2020 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, the nonprofit Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, in a virtual ceremony on June 4.

New York Times best-selling author and illustrator Dav Pilkey (Dog Man, Captain Underpants) and New York Times best-selling author Suzanne Collins (The Hunger Games) are will also participate in a special 100th anniversary tribute to the title sponsor, Scholastic Inc. The event will include additional surprise guests, poetry readings from this year’s National Student Poets and a chance to see selections and hear excerpts from award-winning pieces of art and writing.

“The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards have a strong tradition of honoring innovation and creativity among student artists and writers,” said Christopher Wisniewski, executive director of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers. “These young people have produced works that take risks, speak truth to power, find beauty in the mundane and start crucial conversations about our society. Their accomplishments remind us that no matter what’s going on in the world, the future looks bright. We are proud to honor them with this recognition, hoping that by opening up the ceremony on a virtual stage, the world can share in our congratulations as well.”

Amid the pandemic, for the first time, this year the national celebration for the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards will take place exclusively online. With this virtual shift, gold and silver medalists can share their experience in real time.

Works were selected from approximately 320,000 submissions from students. Teens in grades 7-12, ages 13 and up, from the U.S., Canada, and American schools abroad were eligible for national honors. Nearly 3,000 works of art and writing received national medals for this year’s awards.

The alliance provides more than $300,000 in scholarships annually to top awards recipients and partners with esteemed colleges and universities to make scholarships available for college-bound national medalists.

Past recipients of the awards include Stephen King, John Updike, Kay WalkingStick, Charles White, Joyce Carol Oates, Tschabalala Self, Zac Posen and Andy Warhol.

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards will take place on June 4 at 3 p.m. PT and can be streamed here.