Patapsco Student Awarded National Honor

When Patapsco High School art magnet student Breanna Durst was named among the top four percent of applicants by the young Arts Recognition and Talent Search program (youngARTS), she joined the ranks of past winners, including actress Vanessa Williams, recording artist Josh Groban and "Nashville Star" winner Chris Young.

“It’s phenomenal,” Durst said about the award. “It is a really humbling experience because you are sending it to judges that you don’t know anything about, waiting for their criticism and their approval.  When I opened the letter and saw the word congratulations, I almost stopped breathing.” 

The youngARTS program recognizes high school students chosen each year from a pool of 5,000 applicants as being among the best in the nation in nine artistic fields: cinematic arts, dance, music, jazz, photography, theater, visual arts, voice, and writing.

Other youngARTS alumni include dancer/choreographer Desmond Richardson, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater principals Matthew Rushing and Linda Celeste Sims, New York City Ballet principal Philip Neal, Philadelphia Orchestra principal clarinetist Ricardo Morales, New York Philharmonic guest solo violinist Jennifer Koh, jazz trumpet player Roy Hargrove, Broadway actors Ron Eldard and Raúl Esparza, sculptor Kevin Berlin, and visual artist Hernan Bas.