Theatre and Dance at Jacksonville University, dance Terence Knapp, acting and theater Mark Hoebee, Associate Director of Paper Mill Playhouse, theater George Pinney co-creator of Blast! Jane Alderman Karen Azenberg, choreographer, dance Marek Cholewa, dance Lucine Amara of the Metropolitan Opera, music Sarah Caldwell Dramatic Soprano, Maestra, opera Alfonso Montecino, concert pianist, music Lori Belilove, modern dance Cynthia Bringle, pottery Professor Josip Novakovich, writing. Awards Since the first national competition in 1951, NSAL has presented more than 4,000 awards to young artists. Chapter competitions are usually held in various artistic categories including the one special category specified for the National Competition for that year; only the first-place winners from the chapter competitions in this category advance to the National Competition. Early on in the history of NSAL, the Nicholson/Nielsen Trust Fund was established to provide permanent support for awards to be given annually to ranking finalists in the National Career Award Competition. The principal of the Fund remains intact while the income is used to provide awards each year in one of the six rotating art categories which NSAL highlights in its National Competition. Individuals and corporations may also endow a named award by contributing to the Fund. Current awards available from tax-exempt gifts to this Fund totaling $10,000 or more include: NSAL First Place Award of $10,000 or more is in memory of Mollie Davis Nicholson and Francesca Falk Miller Nielson, founders of the Society. The Estelle Campbell Award is presented to the second-place winner. The Mary Peery Fife Memorial Award is given in the category of Dance. The Catherine A. M. Cavanaugh Award is given in the Literature Category. Other awards include the Dorothy and Bruce Strong Award and the Mollie Davis Nicholson Award A second important activity of NSAL is the annual Winston Scholarship Program for visual artists and vocalists. Each year, scholarships totaling $18,000 - $20,000 are awarded to artists in these fields who are sixteen to twenty-two years of age. Supported by an endowment from Shirley Rabb Winston, these scholarships are used for special study in the recipient’s field. Notable recipients of NSAL awards have included Malcolm Frager (pianist), Shirley MacLaine (actor), Jessye Norman (opera singer; winner of a NSAL contest), Menahem Pressler (Gold Medal of Merit from the National Society of Arts and Letters), George Balanchine (1980 Gold Medal of Merit recipient Notes External links Arts organizations based in the United States Entertainment organizations