STATE OF THE ART

The following students were recognized as 2021 YoungArts Winners by the National YoungArts Foundation for their artistic achievements. YoungArts award winners at all levels receive cash prizes between $100 and $10,000, and winners at the Finalist level are invited to participate in National YoungArts Week + in January, which features virtual classes, workshops, mentorship opportunities from leading artists in their fields, virtual performances, and an exhibition for the public.

Finalists:
Courtney Chiu (CCD, '23) – Dance (Modern/Contemporary)
Michele Lu (PM, '21) – Voice (Popular Voice)
Gianna Pedregon (IM, '21) – Jazz (Violin)

Honorable Mentions:
Maya Alvarez-Coyne (CMD, '21) – Dance (World Dance/Irish Step)
Laura Anne Chen (CW, '21) – Writing (Novel)
Michele Lu (PM, '21) – Voice (Singer-Songwriter)

Merit:
Laura Anne Chen (CW, '21) – Classical Music (Piano)
Wyatt Layton (CW, '23) – Writing (Spoken Word)
Brian Lin (IM, '21) – Classical Music (Saxophone)
Lauren Mei (ACT, '23) – Theater
Charlee Rubino (MT, '21) – Theater
Jonathan Truong (CW, '21) – Writing (Short Story)

Amandine Kataoka (PM, '23) was one of only 50 high school students across the country to attend a three-day session with the Anti-Defamation League through their first Edward Brodsky Student Fellowship. Amandine participated in the summit on anti-Semitism and hate.

Michele Lu (PM, '21) was nominated by the YoungArts Foundation to become a 2021 U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts, honoring artistic and academic excellence. The White House Commission on Presidential Scholars will ultimately choose 20 of the 60 nominees to be recognized for their academic and artistic accomplishments, leadership, community outreach, and overall creativity.

The OCSA Science Olympiad Division C (High School) Team competed against 70 teams from across the nation at both the Aggie Invitational, where they earned first place overall, and at the Yosemite Invitational, where they earned 10th place overall. The team also participated in the Miraloma Invitational. The students received the following awards:

Aggie Invitational:

1st Place
Circuit Lab: Nathan Tatsuta (IM, '24) and Joshua Qin (BR, '23)
Codebusters: Anjal Jain (CV, '22), Joshua Qin (BR, '23), and Jeffrey Yang (CV, '24)
Solar Power: Hannah Kang (VA, '22) and Nathan Tatsuta (IM, '24)

3rd Place
Sounds of Music: Vivian Chen (IM, '23) and Erica Yang (IA, '21)
Forensics: Anjal Jain (CV, '22) and Samantha Su (VA, '21)

4th Place
Dynamic Planet: Jeffrey Yang (CV, '24) and Jiin Yun (IM, '24)
Machines: Nathan Tatsuta (IM, '24) and Joshua Qin (BR, '23)

5th Place
Designer Genes: Grant Li (CW, '23) and Sara Shimabukuro (IM, '21)

Other competitors included Sameer Bajaj (ACT, '24), Kacy Chung (VA, '23), Katherine Given (ACT, '24), Tane Kim (IM, '24), Amy Lee (IM, '23), and Allison Wong (CW, '23).

Yosemite Invitational:

2nd Place
Helicopters: Sameer Bajaj (ACT, '24) and Vivian Chen (IM, '23)

3rd Place
Codebusters: Kacy Chung (VA, '23), Anjal Jain (CV, '22), and Em Wei-Ten (PM, '23)

4th Place
Circuit Lab: Joshua Qin (BR, '23) and Nathan Tatsuta (IM, '24)
Digital Structures: Sameer Bajaj (ACT, '24) and Anjal Jain (CV, '22)
Disease Detectives: Samantha Su (VA, '21) and Allison Wong (CW, '23)
Gravity Vehicle Design: Sameer Bajaj (ACT, '24) and Joshua Qin (BR, '23)

5th Place
Sounds of Music: Vivian Chen (IM, '23) and Nathan Tatsuta (IM, '24)

6th Place
Experimental and Data Analysis: Samantha Su (VA, '21), Joshua Qin (BR, '23), and Kacy Chung (VA, '23)
Designer Genes: Caleb Empig (IM, '23) and Kacy Chung (VA, '23)

Other competitors included Sylvia Cheeseman (DM, '22), Lauren Chudner (VA, '23), Katherine Given (ACT, '24), Antara Kalle (CW, '23), Hannah Kang (VA, '22), Tane Kim (IM, '24), Amy Lee (IM, '23), Grant Li (CW, '23), Hyunjin Park (VA, '23), Haley Shimabukuro (IM, '24), Sara Shimabukuro (IM, '21), Isabelle Tran (VA, '22), Rachel Vu (IM, '24), Erica Yang (IA, '21), Jeffrey Yang (CV, '24), and Jiin Yun (IM, '24).

Miraloma Invitational:

1st Place
Environmental Chemistry: Kacy Chung (VA, '23) and Amy Lee (IM, '23)

4th Place
Detector Building: Vivian Chen (IM, '23) and Nathan Tatsuta (IM, '24)

Congratulations to the members of OCSA’s Mock Trial Team, who competed this year against more than 35 teams from across Orange County, advancing to the semifinals. The primary competition team was victorious against JSerra, Brea Olinda, Foothill, Santa Ana, Beckman, and Yorba Linda, while the secondary competition team defeated Portola and Mater Dei.

Primary Team:
Sophia Abiera (ACT, ‘24)
Sruthi Alle (CV, ‘21)
Catherine Boland (IA, ‘24)
Charlotte Brandman (MT, ‘23)
Riley Bryant (FTV, ‘21)
Edward Chen (IA, ‘24)
Gabriel Chen (PM, ‘22)
Ethan Gray (ACT, ‘22)
Sasha Herthel (ACT, ‘23)
Ashley Hodge (IA, ‘23)
Melanie Huq (CW, ‘21)
Toby Izenberg (CW, ‘23)
Milo Karnes (IA, ‘24)
Emma Kay (ACT, ‘23)
Regan Mading (IA, ‘23)
Mehra Marzbani (ACT, ‘23)
Morgan Milam (IM, ‘24)
Gaby Mikhail (CW, ‘21)
Daisy Noh (IA, ‘22)
Jess Perez (ACT, ‘21)
Paris Lases-Perez (ACT, ‘21)
Colin Root (ACT, ‘22)
Jocelyn Wang (PM, ‘23)

Secondary Team:
Ally Artavia-High (CW, ‘24)
Zabby Bagnol (PD, ‘24)
Daniel Grossgold (IA, ‘24)
McKenna Guldner (IA, ‘24)
Courtney Hines (CW, ‘24)
Darian Hojreh (CAH, ‘22)
Claire Karr (VA, ‘23)
Annabelle Kim (CW, ‘23)
Emily Kim (CW, ‘24)
Nathaniel Kim (DM, ‘22)
Sky Lu (IA, ‘23)
Kendall Phanco (VA, ‘23)
Mia Rinaldi (PM, ‘23)
Aryan Simhadri (ACT, ‘24)
Elora Sparnicht (CW, ‘23)
Luke Stark (IA, ‘24)

Rachel Kramer, Director of the Popular Music Conservatory, was nominated for the Arts School Network (ASN) Dr. Denise Davis-Cotton Emerging Leader Award. This recognition is designed to acknowledge excellence and achievement among rising arts school administrators and to highlight the innovative educational practices or programs of those leaders.

Congratulations to the following students for their success in the annual Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. These students received Regional-at-Large awards.

Honorable Mention:
Anika Biswas (CW, ‘23): Short Story, Boa Constrictor
Lena Brem (CW, ‘23): Short Story, The Ticking Stops
Cat Bui (CW, ‘22): Science Fiction & Fantasy, Libellulidae
Melody Chang (IM, ‘22): Poetry, Ode to an Eraser, Reflections: from a Woman in STEM
Sylvia Cheeseman (DM, ‘22): Drawing & Illustration, Flight
Andy Choi (CW, ‘22): Short Story, 38th Parallel
Erin Choi (VA, ‘22): Painting, Warmth, A Slipped Disc
Adin Choung (IM, ‘22): Short Story, China Dolls
Ethan Chu (VA, ‘21): Film & Animation, Life at a Japanese High School
Nora De Vente (VA, ‘22): Ceramics & Glass, Ignited
Maggie Ding (FTV, ‘22): Film & Animation, VOICE
Emilia Djordjevic (CW, ‘23): Short Story, Blood On My Hands
Joyce Hong (VA, ‘22): Comic Art, Night Illusion at Osaka; Drawing & Illustration, Rotten
Sally Jang (CW, ‘23): Flash Fiction, Keep the Distance, If I Was Back: A Vignette
Youning Jiang (FTV, ‘22): Painting, Portrait of Dad
Aaliyah Joo (VA, ‘23): Drawing & Illustration, America, Land of the Free?; Painting, Dreams of Fish
Hannah Kang (VA, ‘22): Painting, Complexities of Skin Color
Annabelle Kim (CW, ‘24): Short Story, A Thread Between Us, Simplicity of Life
Annette Kim (VA, ‘22): Drawing & Illustration, Human; Sculpture, Leisure
Caroline Kim (VA, ‘25): Fashion, Asymmetry
Chloe Kim (VA, ‘23): Digital Art, Continuos
Katie Kim (CW, ‘23): Short Story, Domesticated
Emily Kim (CW, ‘24): Poetry, picture this...
Grace Kim (BR, ‘22): Personal Essay & Memoir, Imo's House; Science Fiction & Fantasy, Mayu
Olivia Knox (PM, ‘23): Painting, Koi Fish closet
Carrie Kuo (VA, ‘22): Painting, Human, Spring Beginnings; Mixed Media, Scary Carrie
Dawon Lee (PD, ‘23): Drawing & Illustration, Hand Elements
Joyce Lee (VA, ‘21): Painting, Archive; Mixed Media, Crisis, Imitation
Kristie Lee (VA, ‘22): Digital Art, In My Own Little World, Mixed Media, Contend
Samantha Losey (VA, ‘25): Painting, Aries
Evan Yu-Wei Lu (VA, ‘23): Painting, Peppers, Cancer
Caitlyn Mason (CW, ‘23): Journalism, Figure Skaters' Eating Habits Leave Them on Thin Ice
Sidney Muntean (CW, ‘22): Flash Fiction, The Event Horizon
Lisa Ordonez (IA, ‘23): Science Fiction & Fantasy, A Reverie of an Icy Prince; Painting, The Storyteller
Juhyun Park (VA, ‘21): Art Portfolio, The Progression of 2020; Digital Art, Babel City
Junwoo Park (VA, ‘21): Mixed Media, Janus, The Two Faces of a Pandemic; Art Portfolio, Beauty Under Destruction
Tobi-Hope Jieun Park (CW, ‘21): Poetry, the mythos speaks of women; Writing Portfolio, Meraki and Other Dances
Abril Rodriguez Diaz (CW, ‘22): Poetry, Skeleton House
London San Luis (DM, ‘23): Digital Art, INDELIBLE, INVERSION
Keila Sato (CW, ‘21): Novel Writing, The Fire in His Blood
Amy Shi (CW, ‘24): Poetry, Cordae Lupa; Short Story, Animotophobia— fragens, nefasta, et timida
Sohun Shin (VA, ‘24): Painting, Closest, Most Precious; Drawing & Illustration, Home Stays
Elora Sparnicht (CW, ‘23): Humor, In Opposition of Ice Breaker Games
Ashley Thornton (CW, ‘23): Poetry, The Unicorn, The Universal Collapse, Paradise Parasite, Premonitio[n], God is a Butterfly, Starlight
Trenyce Tong (VA, ‘21): Mixed Media, The Bifurcation of Life, Violation; Film & Animation, Weather’s Changing
Jonathan Truong (CW, ‘21): Short Story, Newspaper Planes
Huilun Wang (VA, ‘23): Painting, Light, Leafs
Suofei Wang (VA, ‘21): Painting, Night Market
Xiaowei Wang (VA, '22): Drawing & Illustration, The Composer of Decomposition
Ally Wong (CW, ‘23): Poetry, maintenance inside her heart chamber, Courtesy of the Coyotes, We were left behind to survive, behind grandpa's feet
Katherine Wong (CW, ‘21): Poetry, waning&waxing down capital cul-de-sacs
Jeffrey Yang (CV, ‘24): Flash Fiction, late mis-; Poetry, inner prayer, two eyes
Rachel Yoo (VA, ‘23): Photography, Hands of Stereotypes
Cindy Zhang (VA, ‘24): Painting, Hush
Junzhu Zhang (VA, ‘21): Sculpture, Thin Man; Drawing & Illustration, Red Door, Red Shoes; Painting, Spring 2020; Art Portfolio, The world I live in -2
Carina Zheng (VA, ‘24): Design, Tenki No Ko

The Orange County Register announced the nominees for the 8th Annual Artist of the Year Award. This program highlights talented students across the county for their accomplishments in the arts. 750 students representing 78 Orange County high schools were nominated, and 50 of them are from OCSA! Each of these students have proven their abilities in their areas of expertise. Here are the nominations for Instrumental Music:

Jazz:
Gianna Pedregon (IM, ‘21) - Violin
Reynaldo Soza-Sandoval (IM, ‘21) - Sax

Piano and Strings:
Hannah Noh (IM, ‘21) - Piano
Max Wang (IM, ‘21) - Viola

Winds and Percussion:
Brian Lin (IM, ‘21) - Alto Sax

World/Cultural and Commercial Music:
Analiese Marie Bancroft (PM, ‘21) - Piano/Keyboards
Thomas Daniel Lowrey (PM, ‘21) - Drum Set
Angelina Petticord (PM, ‘21) - Electric Bass Guitar

The Orange County Register announced the nominees for the 8th Annual Artist of the Year Award. This program highlights talented students across the county for their accomplishments in the arts. 750 students representing 78 Orange County high schools were nominated, and 50 of them are from OCSA! Each of these students have proven their abilities in their areas of expertise. Here are the nominations for Vocal Music:

Classical Voice:
Catherine Johnston (CV, ‘21)
Kangsan E. Kim (CV, ‘22)
Ava Kuntz (CV, ‘21)
Evan Richards (CV, ‘22)

Commercial Voice:
Darian Baena (PM, ‘21)
Ye Ji Kim (PM, ‘21)
Michele Lu (PM, ‘21)
Tawnie Kiyoné Shorter (MT, ‘21)

Nonclassical Voice:
Olivia "Via" Forman (MT, ‘21)
Aaliyah Mariah Magcasi (MT, ‘21)
Lukas Wozencraft (CV, ‘22)

The OCSA National History Day Club, founded by Anjal Jain (CV, ‘22), competed in the National History Day Orange County Competition. The students created historically accurate projects relating to the 2021 theme of “Communication: The Key to Understanding.” The following students became Orange County Champions and progressed to the State level.

Anjal Jain (CV, ‘22)
Sally Jang (CW, ‘23)
Jamie Jung (CW, ‘24)
Katie Kim (CW, ‘23)
Arianna Ramirez (BF, ‘26)
Annabel Reiher (CW, ‘23)
Selah Sanchez (CW, ‘23)
Emma Wei-Ten (PM, ‘23)

Other Club Participants
Ashley Hodge (IA, ‘23)
Anna Huang (CW, ‘24)
Lauren Kim (CW, ‘24)
Luke Stark (IA, ‘24)

The OCSA Science Olympiad High School Team (Division C) competed in the Orange County Regional competition and placed in 14 of the 29 events. The team earned 6th place out of almost 40 schools and will advance to the Southern California State Science Olympiad competition. Team member Sameer Bajaj (ACT, ‘24) placed in all of his events.

1st Place
Codebusters: Anjal Jain (CV, ‘22), Joshua Qin (BR, ‘23), and Jeffrey Yang (CV, ‘24)

2nd Place
Digital Structures: Sameer Bajaj (ACT, ‘24) and Anjal Jain (CV, ‘22)
Amazing Mechatronics: Nathan Tatsuta (IM, ‘24) and Isabelle Tran (VA, ‘22)

3rd Place
Chiropterology: Kacy Chung (VA, ‘23) and Caleb Empig (IM, ‘23)
Circuit Lab: Nathan Tatsuta (IM, ‘24) and Joshua Qin (BR, ‘23)
Experimental and Data Analysis: Katherine Given (ACT ‘24), Joshua Qin (BR, ‘23), and Samantha Su (VA, ‘21),
Fermi Questions: Tane Kim (IM, ‘24) and Haley Shimabukuro (IM, ‘24)
Helicopters: Sameer Bajaj (ACT, ‘24) and Vivian Chen (IM, ‘23)
Game On: Katherine Given (ACT, ‘24) and Em Wei-Ten (PM, ‘23)
Geologic Mapping: Aleks Cornforth (CMD, ‘21) and Erica Yang (IA, ‘21)

4th Place
Algorithms and Heuristics: Nathan Tatsuta (IM, ‘24) and Em Wei-Ten (PM, ‘23)
Dynamic Planet: Jeffrey Yang (CV, ‘24) and Jiin Yun (IM, ‘24)
Gravity Vehicle: Sameer Bajaj (ACT, ‘24) and Joshua Qin (BR, ‘23)
Ornithology: Vivian Chen (IM, ‘23) and Caleb Empig (IM, ‘23)

Other Competitors
Amy Lee (IM, ‘23), Grant Li (CW, ‘23), Sara Shimabukuro (IM, ‘21), and Allison Wong (CW, ‘23)

The Orange County Register announced the semifinalists for the 8th Annual Artist of the Year Awards. The Artist of the Year program honors talented students across the county for their accomplishments in the arts.

Computer-Assisted Visual Arts:
Computer Drawing and Painting
Eden Haymond (DM, ‘21)
Ashley Yang (VA, ‘22)

Dance:
Commercial Dance
Danielle Silver (CMD, ‘22)
Dawson Charles Walker (CMD, ‘21)
Concert Dance
Corah Abbott (CCD, ‘21)
World and Cultural Dance
Maya Elizabeth Alvarez-Coyne (CMD, ‘21)
Rodrigo Blanco (BF, ‘21)
Lucas McCollum-VanHoosear (BR, ‘22)

Film and Animation:
Directing and Editing
Ethan Chu (FTV, ‘21)
Johann Ren Collantes (FTV, ‘21)
Nolan Frech (FTV, ‘21)

Handcrafted Visual Arts:
Hand Drawing and Painting
Joyce Lee (VA, ‘21)
Mixed Media
Junzhu Zhang (VA, ‘21)
Sculpting and Metalwork
Juhyun Park (VA, ‘21)

Instrumental Music:
Jazz
Gianna Pedregon (IM, ‘21) - Violin
Piano and Strings
Hannah Noh (IM, ‘21) - Piano

Theater:
Acting
Mia Kaplan (MT, ‘21)
Musical Theater Performance
Ava Kuntz (CV, ‘21)
Madison E. Osment (MT, ‘21)
Charlee Rubino (MT, ‘21)

Vocal Music:
Classical Voice
Ava Kuntz (CV, ‘21)
Commercial Voice
Michele Lu (PM, ‘21)

The Orange County Register announced the finalists for the 8th Annual Artist of the Year Awards. The Artist of the Year program honors talented students across the county for their accomplishments in the arts.

Vocal Music - Commercial Voice
Ye Ji Kim (PM ‘21)

Vocal Music - Classical Voice
Catherine Johnston (CV ‘21)

Dance - Concert Dance
Corah Abbott (CCD, ‘21)

Dance - World/Cultural Dance
Maya Elizabeth Alvarez-Coyne (CMD, ‘21)

Handcrafted Visual Arts - Mixed Media
Junzhu Zhang (VA, ‘21)

Handcrafted Visual Arts - Sculpting and metalwork
Juhyun Park (VA, ‘21)

Film and Animation - Directing and Editing
Noah Frech (FTV, ‘21)

Instrumental Music - Winds and Percussion
Brian Lin (alto sax) (IM, ‘21)

Theatre - Acting
Ariyah Brown (ACT, ‘22)

Michele Lu (PM, ‘21) was selected as a semifinalist in the 2021 U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts competition and will advance to the final round. The White House Commission on Presidential Scholars will ultimately choose 20 students to be recognized for their academic and artistic accomplishments, leadership, community outreach, and overall creativity.

The following students, as a part of the Free To Be Me Studio Performance Arts Academy Dynamix Competition Team, auditioned and were selected to represent Team USA at the World Championships of Performing Arts 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. They will compete against 61 other countries at the worldwide competition next fall. Several of the numbers the troupe auditioned with were musically directed and arranged by OCSA faculty member Jamond McCoy. To read more about their journey, please visit https://bit.ly/3w2ZGEc

Cynthia Allen (IA, ‘25)
Lillie Atkins (IA, ‘25)
India Dawson (PM, ‘25)
Gwendalyn Heredia (IA, ‘26)
Angelina Kidder (MT, ‘26)
Hailey Knowles (IA, ‘25)
Sofia Naccarato (IA, ‘23)
Vinnie Naccarato (PM, ‘25)
Kaylee Nagata (IA, ‘26)
Simone Ponsford (IA, ‘26)
Chloe Reyes (IA, ‘27)
Zachary Sadeghian (IA, ‘26)
Delilah Summers (IA, ‘25)

Sisters Ayiah Soufi (IA, ‘26) and Ellie Soufi (PM) were featured on the cover of the April 2021 issue of ALL EYES Magazine with an eight-page spread. ALL EYES Magazine is an international digital and print magazine that showcases young talent from all over the world.

Summer Brennan (PM, '25) had an original song used in an online event for My New Red Shoes, an organization that works to improve the quality of life and well-being of children and youth by reducing the impact of economic inequality in local communities.

Former Director of the Popular Music Conservatory Rachel Kramer received the 2021 Dr. Denise Davis-Cotton Emerging Leader Award from Arts School Network (ASN) for elevating the conservatory to a new level of excellence and providing an exceptional learning environment for OCSA students. The Dr. Denise Davis-Cotton Emerging Leader Award is designed to recognize excellence and achievement among rising arts schools administrators and to highlight the innovative educational practices or programs of those leaders.

Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA) has been ranked by Niche as the #1 Best Charter High School in California for the third year in a row, as well as the #6 Best Charter High School in America for 2022! We would like to express our gratitude to all the students, teachers, and staff who continue to make OCSA an exceptional institution. To view all rankings for OCSA, please visit: https://bit.ly/3D8R02u

Wyatt Beckley (PM, ‘22) attended the Berklee College of Music’s Summer Aspire program and was selected as a guitarist in the All-Star Funk-Fusion Band.

The following students won first place in their categories in Mount Saint Mary’s University (MSMU) High School Music Competition.

Solo Piano
Helaine Zhao (IM, ‘24) - "Allegro de Concierto" by Enrique Granados

Performer Composer (Instrumental)
Diego Legras (PM, ‘23) - "Improvisation #1" by Diego Legras

Solo Voice
Viveka Saravanan (CV, ‘24) - "Fair Robin I Love" by Kirke Mechem

Chamber Music
Christopher Cung (IM, ‘22) - "Trio in B Minor for Piano, Oboe and Clarinet, Movement I" by Edouard Destenay

Diego Legras (PM, ‘23) won first place in the Performer-Composer (Instrumental) category in Mount Saint Mary’s University (MSMU) High School Music Competition.

The following students were recognized as 2022 YoungArts Winners by the National YoungArts Foundation for their artistic achievements. All YoungArts award winners at all levels receive cash prizes between $100 and $10,000. All YoungArts Finalists were also invited to participate in National YoungArts Week+, which features virtual classes and performances, workshops, mentorship opportunities, and an exhibition for the public.

Finalists:
Emmy Cheung (CMD, ‘22) – Dance (Modern/Contemporary)
Ethan Chu (FTV, ‘21) – Film
Youning Jiang (FTV, ‘22) – Film
Chaewon Kim (CW, ‘23) – Design Arts
Lauren Mei (ACT, ‘23) – Theater
Kailyn Yi (CMD, ‘22) – Dance (Modern/Contemporary)

Honorable Mentions:
Andy Choi (CW, ‘22) – Writing (Play or Script)
Johann Ren Collantes (FTV, ‘21) – Film
Amy Jong (IM, ‘24) – Classical Music (Violoncello)
Wyatt Layton (CW, ‘23) – Writing (Creative Nonfiction)

Merit:
Heather Kim (IM, ‘24) – Classical Music (Flute)
Ava Kuntz (CV, ‘21) – Voice (Classical)
Mia Lopez (BF, ‘23) – Dance (World Dance Forms: Mexican Folkloric)
London San Luis (DM, ‘23) – Visual Arts
Caitlyn Mason (CW, ‘23) – Writing (Creative Nonfiction)
Aidan Meixner (MT, ‘22) – Voice (Singer-Songwriter)
Ava Ulloa (PM, ‘22) – Voice (Popular: Pop)
Jocelyn Wang (PM, ‘23) – Voice (Singer-Songwriter)
Sein Yun (IM, ‘22) – Classical Music (Violin)
Helaine Zhao (IM, ‘24) – Classical Music (Piano)

In addition, Emmy Cheung (CMD, ‘22) and Youning Jiang (FTV, ‘22) attended National YoungArts Week+ as 2022 YoungArts Winners and were nominated to be named 2022 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts in Dance (Modern/Contemporary) and Film respectively. The White House Commission on Presidential Scholars will ultimately choose 20 of the 60 nominees to be recognized for their academic and artistic accomplishments, leadership, community outreach, and overall creativity.

Lana Sawalha, an OCSA history teacher, was offered the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes Fellowship in Scott, KS. The fellowship is awarded annually to educators who have distinguished themselves in teaching understanding and respect through project-based learning.

J.J. Barton (PM, ‘26) was cast in a production of the musical "Love Actually Live" at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts as a member of the ensemble and understudy for the role of Sam.

Orange County School of the Arts was featured in an article by KTLA about our recent Niche ranking as the #1 Best Charter High School in California for the third year in a row, as well as the #6 Best Charter High School in America for 2022. To read the full article, please visit: https://bit.ly/3Iy3N1k

Elective and Conservatory Instructor Cameron Shim received his Level 1 Teaching Certification for Aerial Silks from Aerial Physique.

The OCSA Science Olympiad High School Team (Division C) competed in the BirdSO Mini Science Olympiad competition and placed 8th out of 160 teams. They also competed in the National Invitational Science Olympiad Satellite competition where they placed 21st out of 236 teams. The students received the following awards:


BirdSO Mini Science Olympiad Competition:

5th place:
Codebusters: Grant Conroy (CV, ‘25), Anjal Jain (CV, ‘22), and Joshua Qin (BR, ‘23)

8th place:
Write it CAD it: Katherine Given (ACT, ‘24) and Anjal Jain (CV, ‘22)
Fermi Questions: Tane Kim (IM, ‘24) and Jeffrey Yang (CV, ‘24)

9th place:
Detector Building: Vivian Chen (IM, ‘23) and Nathan Tatsuta (IM, ‘24)

Other Competitors:
Sameer Bajaj (ACT, ‘24), Sylvia Cheeseman (DM, ‘22), Kacy Chung (VA, ‘23), Caleb Empig (IM, ‘23), Shayna Kaplan (IM, ‘23), Grant Li (CW, ‘23), Amy Lee (IM, ‘23), Sarah Parigela (IM, ‘23), Kei Shimabukuro (IM, ‘24), Em Wei-Ten (PM, ‘23), Jiin Yun (IM, ‘24), and Audrey Zhang (IM,‘24)

National Invitational Science Olympiad Satellite Competition:

3rd place:
Write it CAD It: Katherine Given (ACT, ‘24) and Anjal Jain (CV, ‘22)

4th place:
Cybersecurity: Grant Li (CW, ‘23) and Sarah Parigela (IM, ‘23)

6th place:
Botany: Shayna Kaplan (IM, ‘23) and Jeffrey Yang (CV, ‘24)

8th place:
It’s About Time: Joshua Qin (BR, ‘23) and Nathan Tatsuta (IM, ‘24)

11th place:
Ornithology: Sylvia Cheeseman (DM, ‘22) and Vivian Chen (IM, ‘23)

12th place:
Bioinformatics: Em Wei-Ten (PM, ‘23) and Jeffrey Yang (CV, ‘24)

13th place:
Digital Structures: Sameer Bajaj (ACT, ‘24) and Kei Shimabukuro (IM, ‘24)
Codebusters: Grant Conroy (CV, ‘25), Anjal Jain (CV, ‘22), and Joshua Qin (BR, ‘23)

18th place:
Anatomy and Physiology: Sarah Parigela (IM, ‘23) and Audrey Zhang (IM, ‘24)
Astronomy: Grant Conroy (CV, ‘25) and Katherine Given (ACT, ‘24)
Disease Detectives: Tane Kim (IM, ‘24) and Jiin Yun (IM, ‘24)

21st place:
Green Generation: Sylvia Cheeseman (DM, ‘22) and Jiin Yun (IM, ‘24)

Other Competitors:
Kacy Chung (VA, ‘23), Caleb Empig (IMP, ‘23), and Amy Lee (IM, ‘23)

Members of the band Youthanize, Cash Lane (PM, ‘25), Maverick Lane (PM, ‘27), and Max Rossini (PM, ‘25), performed live at OCSA's All-Alumni Holiday Reunion. For more information about the band, please visit: https://bit.ly/3GZ5pAR

Congratulations to OCSA’s Mock Trial Team, faculty advisor Whitney Coates, and volunteer coaches Justice Halim Dhanidina, Melissa Brandman, J.D, and Ethan Feng, J.D. for advancing to the Orange County finals for the first time and receiving second place after competing against rigorous competition. OCSA’s Gold team advanced to the top eight for only the second time in the program’s history. The following students competed as members of the team.

Sophia Abiera (ACT, ‘24)
Sruthi Alle (CV, ‘22)
Zabethah Bagnol (PD, ‘24)
Charlotte Brandman (MT, ‘23)
Sarah Demeter (CW, ‘25)
Sammy Dorfman (IA, ‘24)
V Garcia (ACT, ‘25)
Mona George (CV, ‘25)
Ethan Gray (ACT, ‘22)
Kennedy Harrison (PD, ‘25)
Sasha Herthel (ACT, ‘23)
Joshua Hizon (MT, ‘23)
Ashley Hodge (IA, ‘23)
Toby Izenberg (CW, ‘23)
Milo Karnes (IA, ‘24)
Claire Karr (VA, ‘23)
Emma Kay (ACT, ‘23)
Annabelle Kim (CW, ‘23)
Ariana Kim (IM, ‘25)
Caitlin Kim (ACT, ‘25)
Emily Kim (CW, ‘24)
Fanny Kim (IA, ‘24)
Isabella Kim (ACT, ‘25)
Haley Kleinman (IA, ‘24)
Elaine Lim (FTV, ‘25)
Diego Linn (BR, ‘25)
Samantha Liu (IM, ‘23)
Regan Mading (IA, ‘23)
Katia Miyamoto (CW, ‘24)
Lucy Moriyama (ACT, ‘23)
Daisy Noh (IA, ‘22)
Kendall Phanco (VA, ‘23)
Colin Root (ACT, ‘22)
Ashima Sharma (CW, ‘25)
Cat Silva-Oliveira (IA, ‘24)
Ciara Tadeo (IA, ‘25)
Josie Wang (PM, ‘23)
Sophia Wilhelm (VA, ‘23)
Lacole Yang (CW, ‘24)

Shannon Bae (PM) was featured in a KPopStarz article featuring Korean idols who once lived abroad before moving to Korea. For the full article, please visit: https://bit.ly/3KjLXQg

The OCSA Robotics Team qualified for the 2022 Southern California VRC High School State Championship held at Damien High School, where they will compete for a chance to go to the 2022 VEX Robotics World Championship in Dallas, Texas.

The Orange County Register announced the nominees for the 9th Annual Artist of the Year Awards. This program highlights talented students across the county for their accomplishments in the arts. Each of these students has proven their abilities in their areas of expertise.

Film and Animation:

Animation and Visual Effects
Romeo Martin (DM, ‘22)

Cinematography
Justin Shin (FTV, ‘22)

Directing and Editing
Maggie Ding (FTV, ‘22)
Youning Jiang (FTV, ‘22)
Anirudh Vadhri Kota (FTV, ‘22)
Alexis Ai Macdonald (FTV, ‘22)
Nona Nishigawara (FTV, ‘22)
Michael McDonald (IA, ‘22)

Handcrafted Visual Arts:

Hand Drawing and Painting
Grace Jo (VA, ‘22)
Alison Amber Lee (VA, ‘23)
London San Luis (DM, ‘23)
Xiaowei (Sophia) Wang (VA, ‘22)

Mixed Media
Joyce Yuruo Hong (VA, ‘22)
Hannah Kang (VA, ‘22)

Instrumental Music:

Piano and Strings
Xingyao Li (IM, ‘22)
Sarah Parigela (IM, ‘23)
Sein Yun (IM, ‘22)
Hannah Zhao (IM, ‘22)

The Orange County Register announced the nominees for the 9th Annual Artist of the Year Awards. This program highlights talented students across the county for their accomplishments in the arts. Each of these students has proven their abilities in their areas of expertise.

Theater:

Acting
Scott Becker (ACT, ‘22)
Carlos Jimenez (ACT, ‘22)
Sophia Madrigal (ACT, ‘22)
Lauren Mei (ACT, ‘23)

Musical Theater Performance
Kenneth Takeshita (MT, ‘22)
Brooklyn Vizcarra (MT, ‘22)

Vocal Music:

Classical Voice
Mia Paris Baron (CV, ‘23)
Alexander Jeon (CV, ‘23)
Evan Richards (CV, ‘22)

Commercial Voice
Ava Ulloa (PM, ‘22)

The OCSA High School Science Olympiad Team competed in the BirdSO Invitational competition against 236 teams across the nation.

The team earned the following awards:
Fourth Place
Gravity Vehicle: Sameer Bajaj (ACT, ‘24) and Joshua Qin (BR, ‘23)

Sixth Place
Detector Building: Vivian Chen (IM, ‘23) and Nathan Tatsuta (IM, ‘24)
Eighth Place
Machine Learning: Grant Li (CW, ‘23) and Em Wei-Ten (PM, ‘23)
Ninth Place
Ornithology: Sylvia Cheeseman (DM, ‘22) and Vivian Chen (IM, ‘23)

Summer Brennan (PM, ‘25) released a music video for her original song, “Boy.” To view the music video, please visit: https://bit.ly/3DwrhCv

The Orange County Register announced the winners, finalists, and semifinalists for the 8th Annual Artist of the Year Awards, and OCSA had five winners out of seven arts categories this year! The Artist of the Year program honors talented students across the county for their accomplishments in the arts.

Semifinalists:
Dance:

Commercial Dance
Reagan Vallejo (IA, ‘22)

Concert Dance
Emmy Cheung (CMD, ‘22)
Alisa Nguyen (BCD, ‘23)

World/Cultural Dance
Joshua Qin (BR, ‘23)
Hana Uehara (BR, ‘23)

Film and Animation:

Cinematography
Justin Shin (FTV, ‘22)

Directing and Editing
Maggie Ding (FTV, ‘22)
Alexis Ai Macdonald (FTV, ‘22)
Nona Nishigawara (FTV, ‘22)

The Orange County Register announced the winners, finalists, and semifinalists for the 8th Annual Artist of the Year Awards, and OCSA had five winners out of seven arts categories this year! The Artist of the Year program honors talented students across the county for their accomplishments in the arts.

Semifinalists:
Handcrafted Visual Arts:

Hand Drawing and Painting
London San Luis (DM, ‘23)
Xiaowei (Sophia) Wang (VA, ‘22)

Instrumental Music:

Piano and Strings
Xingyao Li (IM, ‘22)
Sein Yun (IM, ‘22)

Vocal Music:

Classical Voice
Mia Paris Baron (CV, ‘23)

Commercial Voice
Ava Ulloa (PM, ‘22)

Analiese Bancroft (PM, ‘21) co-authored a paper published by the Institute of Physics Science Journal on nanotechnology, titled "Pristine carbon nanotubes are efficient absorbers at radio frequencies." Additionally, she had the opportunity to meet with Bill Nye and Nobel Prize winner Frances Arnold.