Imagine the Possibilities
Imagine the Possibilities is an annual school-wide program made possible through the John D. Wallace, Jr. ’78 Memorial Guest Artist Series Fund that brings authors, illustrators, and poets to Princeton Day School to work directly with students across disciplines and grade levels.History of the Program
The program began in 1996 with the idea of having an artist spend the day on campus and visit classes in the Lower, Middle, and Upper School.
Now, the program has doubled in size and scope, with multiple artists spending two days each on campus, while engaging in division assembly presentations, classroom workshops, and autographing sessions.
Each year, Program Coordinator Bev Gallagher matches up teachers and artists in a variety of ways to best enhance the experience for the entire community. The artists are chosen up to a year in advance, giving the teachers a chance to build curriculum around their visits.
Ms. Gallagher notes, “Each year I get to dream again and imagine ways to inspire our community. I feel honored and privileged to have worked on this program for all these years. What started out as a one-year program has truly grown into something amazing. My colleagues find remarkable ways to use the artists and their talents, allowing for spectacular visits.”
Twenty Years of Imagine the Possibilities (Video)
2020 Artists
April 1 & 2, 2020
Kate Messner, Author
Kate Messner is an award-winning author and educator. She recently gave a TED talk on “How to build a fictional world.”
April 6 & 7, 2020
Laura Vaccaro Seeger, Illustrator & Author
Laura Vaccaro Seeger is a New York Times best-selling author and illustrator and a two-time winner of the Caldecott Honor Award.
April 8 & 9, 2020
Carmen Agra Deedy, Storyteller & Author
Carmen Agra Deedy is an award winning author and storyteller with a highly acclaimed collection of NPR commentaries.
Roster of Artists 1996-2019
Roster of Artists
1996 Georgia Heard · Earl Lewis · Rafe Martin
1997 Ashley Bryan · Georgia Heard · Mary Pope Osborne
1998 Sandra Cisneros · Floyd Cooper · Mary Pope Osborne
1999 Ralph Fletcher · Naomi Shihab Nye · Brian Pinkney
2000 Nikki Grimes · Pat Mora · David Wisniewski
2001 Peter Lourie · Jerry Pinkney · Jacqueline Woodson
2002 Jennifer Armstrong · Paul Muldoon · James Ransome
2003 Paul Janeczko · Chris Raschka · Naomi Shihab Nye
2004 Kristine O’Connell George · Joseph Bruchac · Bryan Collier
2005 Georgia Heard · Earl Lewis · Rafe Martin
2006 Jaime Adoff · Peter Catalanotto · Alice McGill
2007 Kadir Nelson · George Ella Lyon · Janet Wong
2008 Chris Soentpiet · Angela Johnson · Ann Turner
2009 Raul Colon · Kathi Appelt · J. Patrick Lewis
2010 Carmen Agra Deedy · Andrea Davis Pinkney · Jeffrey Eugenides · Charles R. Smith Jr.
2011 Pam Muñoz Ryan · Steve Jenkins · Carmen Agra Deedy
2012 David Diaz · Sara Hart '96 · Michael J. Rosen · Cornel West
2013 Allan Wolf · David Wiesner · Linda Sue Park
2014 Paul O. Zelinksy · Jack Gantos · Marilyn Nelson
2015 Paul B. Janeczko · Matthew Cordell · Carole Boston Weatherford
2016 Jan Reynolds · Peter Brown · Kwame Alexander
2017 Christian Robinson · Matt de la Peña · Mark Fearing
2018 Grace Lin · Melissa Sweet · Kelsey Burns '10
1997 Ashley Bryan · Georgia Heard · Mary Pope Osborne
1998 Sandra Cisneros · Floyd Cooper · Mary Pope Osborne
1999 Ralph Fletcher · Naomi Shihab Nye · Brian Pinkney
2000 Nikki Grimes · Pat Mora · David Wisniewski
2001 Peter Lourie · Jerry Pinkney · Jacqueline Woodson
2002 Jennifer Armstrong · Paul Muldoon · James Ransome
2003 Paul Janeczko · Chris Raschka · Naomi Shihab Nye
2004 Kristine O’Connell George · Joseph Bruchac · Bryan Collier
2005 Georgia Heard · Earl Lewis · Rafe Martin
2006 Jaime Adoff · Peter Catalanotto · Alice McGill
2007 Kadir Nelson · George Ella Lyon · Janet Wong
2008 Chris Soentpiet · Angela Johnson · Ann Turner
2009 Raul Colon · Kathi Appelt · J. Patrick Lewis
2010 Carmen Agra Deedy · Andrea Davis Pinkney · Jeffrey Eugenides · Charles R. Smith Jr.
2011 Pam Muñoz Ryan · Steve Jenkins · Carmen Agra Deedy
2012 David Diaz · Sara Hart '96 · Michael J. Rosen · Cornel West
2013 Allan Wolf · David Wiesner · Linda Sue Park
2014 Paul O. Zelinksy · Jack Gantos · Marilyn Nelson
2015 Paul B. Janeczko · Matthew Cordell · Carole Boston Weatherford
2016 Jan Reynolds · Peter Brown · Kwame Alexander
2017 Christian Robinson · Matt de la Peña · Mark Fearing
2018 Grace Lin · Melissa Sweet · Kelsey Burns '10
2019 Tracy K. Smith · Laurie Halse Anderson · Sophie Blackall
