Allison Royce (left), Lahaina Arts Association board member, congratulates Best In Show winner Kela Strickland.

LAHAINA – The nonprofit Lahaina Arts Association recently awarded partial scholarships to local students pursuing art in college as a part of its 34th annual Art Exhibit and Partial Scholarship Contest.

Graduating high school seniors from Maui County submitted their art for exhibition and consideration in the scholarship competition. This year, 30 students submitted 47 pieces of art.

A special artists’ reception was held in the Old Jail Gallery to award scholarships and honor contest participants.

Tuition assistance scholarships were awarded as follows: Best in Show – $1,000 to Kela Strickland for her watercolor piece, “Road to Heaven”; Painting – $500 to Strickland for “Road to Heaven”; Drawing – $500 to Kristine Felix for “Dedication”; Three-Dimension – $500 to Kai’olu Kaho’ohalahala for “Nene”; Photography – $500 to Rachel Pascual for “Beach Laughs”; Mixed Media – $500 to Marcus Ferreira for “Mano.”

This was the first year LAA awarded the Gianna M. Mitchell Spirit of Aloha Art Scholarship Award. This $500 scholarship was awarded to Baldwin High School student Kela Strickland for her piece called “Emotions or Feelings.”

The funds for this scholarship were raised at the Gianna M. Mitchell “For the Luv of Art” event celebrating the life of the beloved Maui artist.

Lahaina Arts Association is a 501(c)(3) charity dedicated to providing Maui County youth access to the creative arts through education and artistic opportunities. LAA offers free after-school art classes to children on Maui and Molokai through the Children’s Art Outreach Program.