Fifty-four PYLUSD students nominated for 2022 Orange County Artist of the Year

The Orange County Register announced the 2022 nominees for their annual Artist of the Year awards on Sunday, March 20. Each artist is nominated for a specific category, which includes handcrafted visual arts, dance, film/animation, theater, computer-assisted visual arts, instrumental music, and vocal music. This year, 54 Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District (PYLUSD) high school students were nominated in five respective disciplines. The PYLUSD high school juniors and seniors are listed below: 

HANDCRAFTED VISUAL ARTS (5) 
– Dane Abbott, El Dorado High School
– Emily Gregory, El Dorado High School
– Eliza Hunt, El Dorado High School
– Angela Robles, El Dorado High School
– Halina Herc, Esperanza High School

FILM (11) 
– Jake Flores, El Dorado High School
– Nicolas Eric Tung, El Dorado High School
– James J. Aksel, El Dorado High School
– Caitlin Joanna Ball, El Dorado High School 
– Carline Dong, El Dorado High School 
– Yoosung Jung, El Dorado High School
– Dorna Mohajeri, El Dorado High School
– Joslynne Deborah Van Ginkel, El Dorado High School
– Nicholas Silva Trindade, Valencia High School
– Maxwell Greene, Yorba Linda High School
– Ava El-Farra, Yorba Linda High School

THEATER (17)
– Lucia Cavalluzzi, El Dorado High School
– Jayden Ford, El Dorado High School
– Autumn Foster, El Dorado High School
– Kaylee Wing, El Dorado High School
– Hayley Bennett, El Dorado High School
– Sofia Candela, El Dorado High School
– Zachary Colby, El Dorado High School
– Alexis Gilstrap, El Dorado High School
– Phoebe Martin, El Dorado High School
– Aiden Morgan, Valencia High School
– Katrina Ayala, Valencia High School
– Kiana Brumbaugh, Yorba Linda High School
– Jake Napier, Yorba Linda High School
– Sheridan Fung, Yorba Linda High School
– Max Greene, Yorba Linda High School
– Sierra Jones, Yorba Linda High School
– Casey Williams, Yorba Linda High School

COMPUTER-ASSISTED VISUAL ARTS (8)
– Isabelle Amanda Cotter, El Dorado High School
– JT Moffett, El Dorado High School
– Ian Gille, El Dorado High School
– Amelia Kim, El Dorado High School
– Jerred Tapia, El Dorado High School
– Victor Bruno Zatoka, El Dorado High School
– Kaytlin Stinnett, Valencia High School
– Christina Trail, Valencia High School

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC (13) 
– Kent Kawata, El Dorado High School
– Spencer Mar, El Dorado High School
– Ayana Nieto, El Dorado High School
– Wendy Rashelle Ostaszewski, El Dorado High School,
– Bryan Bergo, Esperanza High School 
– Ezekiel Schultz, Esperanza High School
– Francesca Estrada, Esperanza High School
– Aaron Kim, Valencia High School
– Jack Griffin, Valencia High School
– Thomas Herington, Yorba Linda High School
– Katrina Horn, Yorba Linda High School
– Benjamin Brady, Yorba Linda High School
– James Mohr, Yorba Linda High School

All 646 Orange County nominees from 72 participating high schools and arts organizations were recognized by their teachers and private instructors for their outstanding abilities. After the nomination process, a panel of arts educators will conduct in-person interviews to choose the Artist of the Year semi-finalists. The awards’ semi-finalists will be published on Sunday, April 24. The seven Artists of the Year from each discipline will be announced on Sunday, May 1. 

Congratulations to all PYLUSD students who received nominations for their hard work and noteworthy artistry! We wish them the best in moving forward to the semifinals. Click the link below to view the full list of Orange County Artist of the Year nominees.