STATE OF THE ART

Hannah Cho (IM, ‘25) won 3rd place in the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) National performance competition, after previously winning at the State and Southwest division levels. She will be receiving a $300 award from the MTNA Foundation fund.

Zoe Harrison (PD, ‘25) received two instruments from Yamaha and upcycled them into art projects. Her violin piece was selected to be displayed at Able Arts Work Gallery in Long Beach and her guitar piece was selected to be displayed at the Anaheim Muzeo.

The following students were recognized as semifinalists in The Music Center’s 33rd Annual Spotlight Program. Spotlight is a nationally acclaimed arts training and scholarship program for teens that awards more than $100,000 in cash scholarships annually. Semifinalists have the opportunity to attend a special master class in their discipline with highly regarded artists who share their expertise on performance technique, training, and professional life. Each semifinalist will virtually audition once more, and the top two finalist performers in each category will be selected for a total of 14 Grand Prize Finalists.

Emmy Cheung (CMD, ‘22) - Dance
Catherine Johnston (CV, ‘21) - Classical Voice
Kangsan Kim (CV, ‘22) - Classical Voice
Ava Kuntz (CV, ‘21) - Classical Voice
David Lee (IM, ‘21) - Jazz Instrumental
Mallory McKenna (CMD, ‘23) - Dance
Gianna Pedregon (IM, ‘21) - Jazz Instrumental
Bridget Phillips (MT, ‘22) - Acting
Sydney Thomas (CMD, ‘22) - Dance
Hana Uehara (BR, ‘23) - Dance
Kailyn Yi (CMD, ‘22) - Dance

The following students were selected as 2021 Dragon Kim Fellows and earned $5,000 community service grants from the Dragon Kim Foundation. These students were chosen from over 240 applicants across California and Nevada and went through a rigorous interview process to earn the fellowships.

Melody Chang (IM, ‘22)
Adin Choung (IM, ‘22)
Abril Rodriguez Diaz (CW, ‘22)
Katelyn Jo (IM, ‘22)
Samantha Perez (BF, ‘22)
Iris Wang (IM, ‘22)
Eric Zhu (FTV, ‘22)

Adrienne Dunworth (IA, ‘22), Luke Witting (IA, ‘23), and their band, Color of Sound, were recognized in the “Amazing Teens” section of the Ladera Ranch Roots and Wings magazine for performing more than 30 live three-hour performances since mid-May in support of local small businesses.

To read the full magazine article, please visit https://bit.ly/3gbPnJo

Congratulations to the following students for their success in the annual Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. These students received Regional-at-Large awards. Gold Key recipients will now be judged at the national level.

Gold Key Award
Sylvia Cheeseman (DM, ‘22): Painting, The King; Digital Art, Dreamer
Nora De Vente (VA, ‘22): Printmaking, Mother of Anthropocene
Joyce Hong (VA, ‘22): Drawing & Illustration, Recurrection
Mia Hsu (VA, ‘23): Painting, My Asian Woman
Grace Jo (VA, ‘22): Painting, Help for Hope
Hannah Kang (VA, ‘22): Painting, Complexities of Skin UnderTones (Sequel)
Alison Lee (VA, ‘23): Mixed Media, Buried in America; Painting, Refraction
Amanda Lee (IM, ‘23): Science Fiction & Fantasy, The Girl Who Brought Back Life
Kristie Lee (VA, ‘22): Sculpture, Communion, Into the Void
Joyce Lee (VA, '21): Art Portfolio, 2020 Frenzy; Drawing & Illustration, Colorism, Nature's Unification, Reminisce
Grant Li (CW, ‘23): Humor, An Update from Heaven - Yeah, We Don't Know Either
Caitlyn Mason (CW, ‘23): Dramatic Script, two types of goodbye
Juhyun Park (VA, ‘21): Film & Animation, Pandemic; Expanded Projects, Homes - Social Distancing; Drawing & Illustration, Time in Quarantine
Junwoo Park (VA, ‘21): Drawing & Illustration, New Generation Appears, Violence has no Boundaries
Bridget Phillips (MT, ‘22): Poetry, Be Pretty— No, Be Clever
London San Luis (DM, ‘23): Painting, Ocularity
Amy Shi (CW, ‘24): Poetry, Monsters Amid War
Clara Son (CW, ‘23): Poetry, The Maiden In My Dreams
Ashley Thornton (CW, ‘23): Critical Essay, The Dead Part of a Star; Poetry, Catallena
Trenyce Tong (VA, ‘21): Sculpture, WorldWide; Drawing & Illustration, 13 Mementos on My Desk; Art Portfolio, Connective Screens
Amy Wang (VA, ‘23): Painting, Pajamas
Suofei Wang (VA, ‘21): Architecture & Industrial Design, Woven Garden, Concert Hall; Drawing & Illustration, Tea Set
Ally Wong (CW, ‘23): Poetry, Springrolls, On Lunar New Year; Short Story, Gutted
Kevin Yang (VA, ‘24): Drawing & Illustration, The Upside Down World
Cindy Zhang (VA, ‘24): Digital Art, Assumptions

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

Silver Key Award:
Lena Brem (CW, ‘23): Short Story, The Cul-de-sac
Laura Anne Chen (CW, ‘21): Flash Fiction, Windowpane Glass; Novel Writing, Jewel-Steeped Hibiscus
Andy Choi (CW, ‘22): Poetry, Cyborg Asian Americana
Adin Choung (IM, ‘22): Flash Fiction, Yellow to White; Personal Essay & Memoir, My Poor Green Frog Mother
Kacy Chung (VA, ‘23): Drawing & Illustration, Escape, Wonder
David Du (FTV, ‘24): Film & Animation, Incent City
Isabel Hahn (CW, ‘22): Short Story, Sonder
Faith Hochgesang (IA, ‘23): Poetry, Quaran-Sonnet
Jessica Hong (CW, ‘24): Personal Essay & Memoir, The Raging Inferno
Joyce Hong (VA, ‘22): Painting, War of Worship
Melanie Huq (CW, ‘21): Short Story, Isolatoes, The Sapphire Key
Jamie Jung (CW, ‘24): Flash Fiction, My Name; Short Story, The Voice
Tara Kalle (CW, ‘23): Flash Fiction, Baby Luke My 'Demon' Brother
Hannah Kang (VA, ‘22): Painting, Prerogative of the Activists
Annette Kim (VA, ‘22): Painting, Incompetent
Chloe Kim (VA, ‘23): Comic Art, My Quarantine
Donggyu Kim (VA, ‘24): Ceramics & Glass, The Amalgamate
Lauren Kim (VA, ‘22): Sculpture, Life Organs; Expanded Projects, The Pixel World
Ava Li (VA, ‘22): Painting, mystery forest
Leo Lai (CW, ‘24): Short Story, Peter the Pencil and Ed the Eraser
Joyce Lee (VA, ‘21): Painting, Burning
Evan Yu-Wei Lu (VA, ‘23): Mixed Media, Time
Caitlyn Mason (CW, ‘23): Dramatic Script, life in the sky; Short Story, the family on the bathroom wall
Sidney Muntean (CW, ‘22): Flash Fiction, MUSINGS OF A MODERN-DAY GHOST; Personal Essay & Memoir, Desperado
Ashley Oh (DM, ‘24): Sculpture, Ethereal
Lisa Ordonez (IA, ‘23): Poetry, Nothing Lasts; Short Story, Where the Stars and Fires Played the Same Song
Kaitlyn Pak (VA, ‘22): Painting, Submerged
Juhyun Park (VA, ‘21): Painting, Split Realities of Quarantine; Drawing & Illustration, New Normal
London San Luis (DM, ‘23): Digital Art, Spring in America, 2020
Keila Sato (CW, ‘21): Science Fiction & Fantasy, Helios, The Last Ama; Secrets in the Sands; Writing Portfolio, Distant Worlds
Amy Shi (CW, ‘24): Short Story, Sanguine
Sohun Shin (VA, ‘24): Mixed Media, Natural Beauty
Clara Son (CW, ‘23): Poetry, Greek Tragedies, Ablaze
Elora Sparnicht (CW, ‘23): Humor, My Name is COVID-19
Trenyce Tong (VA, ‘21): Digital Art, Pixelated View
Huilun Wang (VA, ‘23): Painting, Fallen
Vivienne Williams (VA, ‘23): Drawing & Illustration, Construction of One’s Self
Ally Wong (CW, '23): Poetry, Eczema, Assimilation, Calligraphy Lesson
Jeffrey Yang (CV, ‘24): Flash Fiction, the orphan's memoir; Poetry, gone forever, dear ai
Kevin Yang (VA, ‘24): Painting, Blinded
James Yi (CW, ‘24): Flash Fiction, First Human
Junzhu Zhang (VA, ‘21): Mixed Media, Tongue; Painting, Storage Room, Lady with Earrings

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

Christina Miles (CW, ‘21) was selected by the Get Lit organization to perform alongside two other poets at the Golden Globe Awards.

The OCSA Eye Matter Club, founded by Anjal Jain (CV, ‘22), was covered in an article by Voice of OC. The Eye Matter Club helps individuals with eye impairment to connect with each other through the arts. Eye Matter recently hosted online international art classes in nine different artistic disciplines for individuals with visual impairments. These art classes were taught completely by OCSA students and the visually impaired students' artistic performances were displayed during an international showcase. The following students are also members of the club.

Ritika Asher (CCD, ‘22)
Cece Fanelli (PD, ‘22)
Ava Gaskins (FTV, ‘22)
Stella Goodman (CV, ‘23)
Joyce Lee (CV, ‘22)
Delaney Manna (PD, ‘23)
Sarah Park (CV, ‘23)
Finley Sasena (CCD, ‘23)
Hailey Somphone (CV, ‘22)
Larkin Ten Elshof (CV, ‘22)
Grace Wilcox (ACT, ‘22)

Please view the article here: https://bit.ly/3dgeRDd

The following students from OCSA's Junior Statesmen of America (JSA) chapter ran a successful debate event, which featured guest speaker former California Congressman Harley Rouda. More than 50 students from JSA chapters across Southern California attended and participated. Jennifer Woo (IA, '21) was also voted "Best Speaker'' for her debate.

Maya Coyne (CMD, ‘21)
Tane Kim (IM, ‘24)
Sophia Kimmel (CV, ‘22)
Max Mikkelsen (IA, ‘22)
Aashna Rana (CV, ‘23)
Rajsi Rana (CW, ‘22)
London San Luis (DM, ‘23)
Isabella Szabo (CV, ‘21)
Jennifer Woo (IA, ‘21)

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 Computer-Assisted Visual Arts:

Computer Drawing and Painting:
Eden Haymond (DM, ‘21)
Alaina Marino (DM, ‘21)
Ashley Yang (VA, ‘22)

Graphic Design and Digital Illustration:
Carla Forno (VA, ‘22)

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 Dance:

Commercial Dance:
Danielle Silver (CMD, ‘22)
Dawson Charles Walker (CMD, ‘21)

Concert Dance:
Corah Abbott (CCD, ‘21)
Ian Francisco Roman (CCD, ‘22)

World/Cultural Dance:
Maya Elizabeth Alvarez-Coyne (CMD, ‘21)
Rodrigo Blanco (BF, ‘21)
Lucas McCollum-VanHoosear (BR, ‘22)
Rodrigo Francisco Rea (BF, ‘21)

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 Film/Animation:

Animation and Visual Effects:
Angela Benet (DM, ‘21)

Cinematography:
Antone Axten (MT)

Directing and Editing:
Ethan Chu (FTV, ‘21)
Johann Ren Collantes (FTV, ‘21)
Noah Frech (FTV, ‘21)
Nolan Hieu Trifunovic (FTV, ‘21)
Elinor Weber (FTV, ‘21)

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 Handcrafted Visual Arts:

Ceramics:
Hannah Kang (VA, ‘22)

Hand Drawing and Painting:
Joyce Lee (VA, ‘21)
Samantha (Ziyao) Su (VA, ‘21)

Mixed Media:
Junzhu Zhang (VA, ‘21)

Sculpting and Metalwork:
Juhyun Park (VA, ‘21)

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 Theater:

Acting:
Ariyah Brown (ACT, ‘21)
Sophia Del Rey (ACT, ‘21)
Justin Joung (MT, ‘21)
Mia Kaplan (MT, ‘21)
Taite Morrison (IA, ‘22)

Musical Theater Performance:
Madison E. Osment (MT, ‘21)
Charlee Rubino (MT, ‘21)
Arielle Leeah Schmid (MT, ‘21)

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)

Katherine Wong (CW, ‘21) was named a 2021 Coca-Cola Scholar in recognition of her superior leadership, service, and academics, as well as her efforts to positively affect others in her community. Out of the 251 regional finalists across the country, she was one of 150 selected to receive a $20,000 college scholarship and join a network of more than 6,000 Coca-Cola Scholar alumni that encourage, challenge, and support each other in their common goal of making the world a better place.

The following Instrumental Music Conservatory students auditioned and were accepted into the California Orchestra Directors Association All-State Ensembles.

Irene Choung (IM, ‘24) - Cello
Amy Lee (IM, ‘23) - Violin
Amy Jong (IM, ‘24) - Cello
Amelia Kang (IM, ‘26) - Violin
Lauren Kim (IM, ‘23) - Violin
Tane Kim (IM, ‘24) - Cello
Amy Lee (IM, ‘23) - Violin
Jenny Park (IM, ‘26) - Violin
Benjamin Quil (IM, ‘26) - Violin
Amelia Shiwota (IM, ‘26) - Violin
Jiin Yun (IM, ‘24) - Cello
Hannah Zhao (IM, ‘22) - Violin

Lilah D. Horton (CMD, ‘21) was selected as last year's Dance Artist of the Year by the Orange County Register as part of a competition that included 100 nominated dance artists from all over Orange County’s public, private, and charter high school community. She was the first-ever Artist of the Year from OCSA's Commercial Dance Conservatory in the 30-year tenure of former Director Jim Kolb.

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)

Aryan Simhadri (ACT, ‘24) was cast as the lead in the new Disney+ remake of Cheaper by the Dozen.

Aashna Rana (CV, ‘23) participated in the VOCE 2021 Festival and won 1st Place Alternate in the Solo Competitive 14-15 Year Old Division.

Holly Calderon (MT, ‘24) was accepted into the Boston Conservatory at Berklee Musical Theater Acting Intensive for Summer 2021.

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)

Tane Kim (IM, ‘24) earned 3rd place at the 66th Annual Orange County Science and Engineering Fair (OCSEF) for his research paper titled "Analyzing TCGA Data to Identify Gene Mutations Linked with Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Asians."

Hannah Cho (IM, ‘25) won 3rd place in the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) National performance competition, after previously winning at the State and Southwest division levels. She will be receiving a $300 award from the MTNA Foundation fund.

The OCSA Debate Team attended the High School Public Debate Program bi-coastal tournament and received 1st place for highest percentage wins in debate rounds and 1st place for best overall school. The following students participated and placed.

Team Awards
1st Overall Team: Melanie Huq (CW, ‘21), Melanie Kallah (IA, ‘21), and Isabel Lyons (IA, ‘22)
6th Overall Team: Cynthia Huang (CW, ‘24), Amy Lee (IM, ‘23), and Aashna Rana (CW, ‘23)
7th Overall Team: Sophie Ma (BR, ‘23), Jillian Metzker (IA, ‘22), and Terra Skaar (PD, ‘24)
8th Overall Team: Ashley Hodge (IA, ‘23), Joyce Hong (VA, ‘22), and Rajsi Rana (CW, ‘22)

Individual Speaker Awards
2nd Place: Melanie Kallah (IA, ‘21)
12th Place: Cynthia Huang (CW, ‘24)
14th Place: Annabelle Kim (CW, ‘23)

Justice Smith (MT, ‘13) was featured in an article by The New York Times and was also a featured guest on Jimmy Kimmel LIVE.

To view his segment on the show, please visit https://bit.ly/2RwFlIk.

Tisha Custodio (ACT, ‘19) was cast in a lead role in the upcoming Disney+ original series Big Shot.

Joy Baik (VA, ‘19) provided the illustrations for the children's book In All of Your Days Have You Seen the Ways an Animal Plays an Instrument?, which was written by an OCSA alumni parent. The duo is working on a second book to be released this fall.

Lauren Lim Jackson (CMD, ‘03), Interim Director of the Musical Theatre Conservatory, was featured in an article by Orange Coast Magazine that highlights her wellness classes at the Argyros Plaza at Segerstrom Center for the Arts.

To view the article, please visit https://bit.ly/3nXsnzn

Vice President of Development Cathy Michaels was named a 2021 Woman of Distinction by Senator Tom Umberg and the 34th California Senate District. This award honors outstanding women who exemplify ethical leadership and a commitment to making a positive impact in the community.