Register here for the 14th edition
All eleventh graders in selected schools listed below are invited to compete for the 2024 Palazzo Strozzi High School Renaissance Award. In this competition, participants are required to research and write a 1,000 word essay on the Renaissance, choosing one of three essay questions.
All students who wish to participate in competition must first register TAB HERE
This competition is organized in partnership with the New York City Department of Education, the Los Angeles Unified School District and Detroit Public Schools.
2024 Participating Schools
New York City:
Digital Arts & Cinema Technology High School, Brooklyn
CSI High School for International Studies, Staten Island
DeWitt Clinton High School, Bronx
Long Island City High School, Queens
The Facing History School, Manhattan
Los Angeles:
Felicitas & Gonzalo Mendez High School
Ramon C. Cortines School of Visual & Performing Arts
Essays are due to appointed faculty of participating schools on February 13th, 2024.
The appointed faculty will submit 6 finalists’ essays to Palazzo Strozzi Foundation’s Advisory Committee. The Committee then will review each essay and conduct interviews with each finalist. After thoughtful consideration of the finalists’ essays and personal interviews the Committee will select two stronger candidates per participating school as a recipient of the 2024 Award.
All finalists will receive a certificate acknowledging his/her participation. This achievement can be used for college applications. The 18 competition winners, along with four chaperone/teachers, will be awarded an all-expenses paid trip to Florence, Italy during the summer of 2024.
Awardees will participate in a month-long academic program based in Florence, Italy. New York University’s Florentine campus is the host of classes which are taught by the 4 chaperones/teachers. Classes will center around the evolutions of the Italian Renaissance and the composition of a college common application essay. In addition to classes on campus, the group (students and chaperones/teachers) will study on site at various locations of cultural significance in Florence, surrounding areas, and in the cities of Milan, Venice, and Rome.
A certificate will be awarded to each student upon successful completion of the four weeks academic program. The aim of this award and experience is to help participants secure admissions to college. Above all, Palazzo Strozzi Foundation USA, hopes participation in this program proves a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that inspires each student to pursue future endeavors in the spirit of the Renaissance.
The Palazzo Strozzi, a palatial home and now converted cultural center, is a prime example of Florentine Renaissance architecture. Today the Palazzo Strozzi hosts series of art exhibitions that showcase a range of art periods and geographies. The Palazzo Strozzi Foundation USA funds this award in its entirety.
The Palazzo Strozzi Foundation USA thanks all interested students and welcomes their participation.