The skills of the student artists at Bridgewater-Raritan High School were recognized with the presentation of the 2025 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards.
The Appel Farm Arts & Music Center, which is located in Salem County’s rural Borough of Elmer, in partnership with the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers presented Bridgewater-Raritan High School students with the 2025 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards recently.
According to its website, Appel Farm Arts & Music Center was incorporated in 1978 as a non-profit, charitable and educational organization with tax-exempt status, professional staff, and volunteer Board of Directors. Its stated mission is: To provide people of all ages, cultures and economic backgrounds with a supportive environment in which they can appreciate, study and actively participate in the visual and performing arts.
Now in its seventh decade, Appel Farm has evolved into a multidisciplinary regional arts center serving audiences, artists, and students through local, regional, national, and international programs. Our programs build on the Appel’s founding principles, providing opportunities for arts education, arts appreciation and creative expression to more than 32,000 children and adults.
The award-winning students are taught by three of the high school’s fine Visual and Performing Arts Teachers—Sarah Nassan, Jason Draine and Angela Morin.
Below are the Bridgewater-Raritan High School student winners and their awards and their educators..
Sarah Nassan’s students
Beneath Subordination Silver Key (Painting) Lucia Bolle
Sorrow: The Weight of Water Gold Key (Drawing & Illustration) Lucia Bolle
Hello, World. Gold Key (Painting) Lucia Bolle
Nostalgia: What Once Was Silver Key (Painting)Lucia Bolle
The Show Gold Key (Painting) Lucia Bolle
The Bug Mafia's Takeover Gold Key(Painting) Lucia Bolle
Death & Taxes Gold Key (Drawing & Illustration) Harsha Balamurugan
Girlhood Honorable Mention (Drawing & Illustration) Harsha Balamurugan
Resilient Elegance Honorable Mention (Painting) Parinita Chandrashekar
Shower Thoughts Silver Key (Digital Art) Rin Van Loggerenberg
Under Pressure Honorable Mention (Mixed Media) Rin Van Loggerenberg
The Melting Layers of Time (Drawing & Illustration) Silver Key Chandrashekar Parinita
Looking Out (Drawing & Illustration) Honorable Mention Julia Li
Jason Draine’s students
Red Fuji on My Desk Painting Gold Key Moffitt Brigid
Exotic (Drawing & Illustration) Honorable Mention Moffitt Brigid
Dream in Color (Drawing & Illustration) Silver Key Moffitt Brigid
Veil Of Shadows (Digital Art) Honorable Mention Nayeli Esquivel
Springtime in California (Painting) Gold Key Suzanna Lu
Angela Morin’s student
Heart of Stone (Ceramics) Honorable Mention Lauren Yang
According to Ms. Nassan, “Students’ work(s) were reviewed and recognized by a panel of creative professionals, and awarded for its outstanding merit in originality, skill, and the emergence of a personal voice and vision.”
She also reported that the students who won a gold key are automatically considered for National Awards, including Gold Medals, Silver Medal, and scholarship awards. Gold Key works are being judged at the national level in New York City next month.