The Museum of Contemporary Art Denver provides scholarships to a graduating high school senior who demonstrates innovation, creativity, fearlessness, and a willingness to risk failure in the pursuit of something new. The Failure Award scholarship rewards a Colorado student who embraces the spirit of creative risk-taking with scholarship dollars that can be used at any accredited post-secondary institution towards educational expenses.
While so much of student life is focused on achievement, MCA Denver believes that in order to create something original and authentic, it is necessary to risk failure. The Failure Award is based on documentation of a project the student created or produced while in high school that demonstrates originality and creativity.
Eligibility
Students who meet all of the criteria are eligible to apply.
- Are a resident of and attend high school in Colorado
- Will graduate from high school in the spring of 2023
- Will attend an accredited college or university in the fall of 2023
- Are able to attend the Failure Award Scholarship Presentation on April 29, 2023
Selection
Scholarships will be awarded through a competitive process based on documentation of a project the student created or produced while in high school that demonstrates originality and creativity. This includes:
- project description
- supporting documentation
- demonstration of creative risk-taking
- presentation
If selected, students will present their project to a panel of judges, as well as to the visiting public, during the MCA Denver Failure Award. Each student will be given up to ten minutes to present their work and then will answer questions from the panel. Participants will be evaluated on originality, innovation, and their ability to present a project within the theme of risking failure as an integral part of the creative process.
The top winner of the Failure Award Scholarship will receive a college scholarship in the amount of up to $20,000. The award will be distributed for up to four years in $5,000 increments.
Additional information
Awards can be used for tuition, fees, required books and supplies, room and board, and other qualified educational expenses. All scholarships will be paid directly to a recipient’s school. Award disbursement is contingent upon the outside scholarship policies of a recipient’s college or university, as well as the length of their program. Exceptions may be made for students who have been accepted into a college but defer enrollment for one year (commonly referred to as a gap year).
The Failure Award is based on documentation of a project the student created or produced while in high school that demonstrates originality and creativity. This can be a creative project, like a novel, a play, an opera; a technology-based project like a design for a new car, or a spaceship, or a robot; or something that falls outside of these criteria altogether. Some projects may present solutions to problems in the world, however, all projects will be considered, no matter how harebrained, impractical, or absurd.
Applicants must submit documentation of a project, which they have undertaken and completed during their high school years, that demonstrates a higher level of creativity in the attempt to create something that is genuinely new. We are looking for projects that contain originality and authenticity. All types of projects will be considered, including, but not limited to: visual arts, drawing, painting, photography, sculpture, dance, theatre, performing arts, instrument or voice composition, design, fashion, culinary arts, technology, gaming, robotics, business ventures, social innovation, or other creative practice. The project must be the original work of the applicant. Group projects will not be considered. Projects must be complete, and scholarship dollars cannot be directed towards completion of the project.
Finalists will be selected based on their project description and supporting documentation, their demonstration of creative risk-taking, and their presentation. If selected, students will present their project to a panel of judges, as well as to the visiting public, during the MCA Denver Failure Award. Each student will be given up to ten minutes to present their work and then will answer questions from the panel. Participants will be evaluated on originality, innovation, and their ability to present a project within the theme of risking failure as an integral part of the creative process.
