Competition Countdown: Submissions Due September 15!
Celebrate the Stories of Unsung Heroes!
The Innovation Generation directory highlights role models whose remarkable innovations, inventions, and research have made positive, profound, and lasting contributions to society. Browse the stories of these Unsung Heroes to choose a topic for the summer competition!
The 2026 Summer Competition, open to students in grades 9–12, offers multiple awards totaling over $20,000 in financial prizes. Check out the Spotlight Prize challenges and directory of over 40 Unsung Heroes who were innovators. No entry fee. Submission deadline is September 15, 2026.
View Innovation Generation Directory
ARTEFFECT Ambassadors — Visual Arts Online Fellowship 2026–2027
Apply By Monday, September 14
ARTEFFECT Ambassadors is an online fellowship for educators working directly with students in grades 6–12 to foster the visual arts. Ambassadors learn alongside other high-level practitioners through visual arts-focused, project-based lessons centered on the inspiring and diverse stories of Unsung Heroes from history.
Thank you to all who joined the Ambassadors Info Session last week. This session covered an overview of ARTEFFECT, the Ambassadors program requirements and timeline. Four previous ARTEFFECT Ambassadors shared about their experiences and capstone projects. A special thank you to the guest speakers Corina Alvarezdelugo, Dr. Stephen Newbold, Melissa Sylvester, and Michelle Vevante!
Ambassadors in Action!
Meet our 2025–2026 Ambassador Randi Sparks, Ed.S., a Visual Art/Speech/Theatre Facilitator, Electives Team Lead, and Fine Arts Department Head at Rogers Academy of Leadership & Innovation in Rogers, Arkansas.
Each ARTEFFECT Ambassador culminates their visual arts online fellowship with a capstone project that brings the inspiring stories of the LMC Unsung Heroes into their classrooms and communities.
Here is an excerpt from Randi’s Capstone Project report:
“Overall, my favorite learning impact of this project was seeing how energized and interested they became when telling the stories of their chosen Unsung Heroes to me, our class intern, and anyone who would listen! The focus on having them teach each other about their Unsung Heroes meant that they learned significant details about many rather than just one.”
Congratulations to Randi and her students at Rogers Academy of Leadership & Innovation for your inspiring ARTEFFECT projects!
Read more about Randi’s capstone project
Stay Connected!
Be sure to follow ARTEFFECT on these platforms for announcements, news, professional development, resources and more!
- ARTEFFECT Instagram
- ARTEFFECT Facebook Page
- Art Educators Facebook Group
- ARTEFFECT YouTube
- ARTEFFECT on X
For inquiries, contact: arteffect@lowellmilken.org