City of Santa Clarita Press Release

Sister Cities’ 2026 Young Artists and Authors Showcase Winners Announced

Santa Clarita Sister Cities, in partnership with the City of Santa Clarita, is proud to announce the winners of the 2026 Young Artists and Authors Showcase (YAAS).

The local winners include:

Art (Classic Medium)

• Sallie R Butler (Legacy Academy) – Lifeless
• Ida Sabery (Saugus High School) – Fight for Freedom
• Vihaan Udeshi (Rancho Pico Junior High School) – Hearts of Hope
• Leah C Be (Academy of the Canyons) – Visions in a Shoebox
• Maanvi Rudraprakash – An Eccentric Embrace
• Diya Boini (Academy of the Canyons) – Growing Generations

Art (Digital Medium)

• Josh Justin (Academy of the Canyons) – The Ideas of Today
• Justin Paredes (Academy of the Canyons) – The Network of Tomorrow
• Emma Carlos (Academy of the Canyons) – Louder Together

Essay/Creative Writing

• Athena Davis (Saugus High School) – Visions of Tomorrow
• Srikushal Vagvala (Rio Norte Junior High School) – The World We Create
• Isabella Celaya (Saugus High School) – Voices of Today, Visions of Tomorrow
• Garrett Buck (Saugus High School) – Sister Cities Essay
• Ellen Savoie (Saugus High School) – Sister Cities Essay

Poetry

• Cecilia Ojeda (Academy of the Canyons) The Voice I Inherited
• Aryahi Patankar (Arroyo Seco Junior High School) Voices of Today, Visions of Tomorrow
• Ian Garcia (Academy of the Canyons) – Moving the World
• Rukiya Kabir (Academy of the Canyons) – Neighbors Amity

Original Music

• Kingsley Perez (Saugus High School) – To a Wall
• Riley Racela (Academy of the Canyons) – Remnants

Photography

• Kayton Wickremasuriya (Saugus High School) – Wings of Unity, Solidarity & Amity

These outstanding student submissions were submitted to Sister Cities International in Washington, D.C., where they competed against students from around the globe.

Four students representing Santa Clarita Sister Cities won at the international level: 

• Gina Intravartolo (West Ranch High School) – Echoes of Our Great Nation (Original Music)
• Susmit Das (Academy of the Canyons) – The Light We Carry (Poetry)
• Anagha Vadrevu (Rio Norte Junior High School) – A World Where We Rule (Essay)
• Caroline Tsan (Academy of the Canyons) – What Do You See Inside? (Digital Art)

The annual YAAS gives youth the opportunity to express their vision for a more unified, peaceful world through original artwork, music and literature. The 2026 Showcase encouraged youth to submit entries inspired by the theme, “Voices of Today, Visions of Tomorrow,” highlighting the United States’ celebration of 250 years since its founding, and Sister Cities International for 70 years of building global friendships and cultural understanding.

Community members can view these students’ winning entries on SantaClaritaSisterCities.org.  The international winners are featured on the Sister Cities International website, SisterCities.org.

The Santa Clarita Sister Cities program is a local organization with a mission to foster international partnerships between the City of Santa Clarita and cities abroad, and promote mutual understanding, friendship and cooperation through reciprocal youth, cultural, educational, professional, humanitarian and economic programs and exchanges. Sister Cities International is a non-profit organization created by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956 to foster partnerships among communities around the globe and promote peace through mutual respect, understanding and cooperation – one individual, one community at a time. The City of Santa Clarita has international Sister Cities in Tena, Ecuador and Sariaya, Philippines. 

For more information, please visit SantaClaritaSisterCities.org, contact Tyler Pledger at (661) 286-4176 or email SisterCities@SantaClarita.gov.