Brosseau Creativity Awards
The Jack and Lavon Brosseau Creativity Awards are a yearly competition for KU undergraduate students in two categories: writing and diverse media.
Jump Links
About
These awards are named after Lavon Brosseau of Concordia, Kansas, who believed in the power of education and teaching. She gained a college education through the generosity of others and established these awards to return the favor. The Brosseau Creativity Awards celebrate creative scholarly work in any area of study. Successful projects should demonstrate risk-taking, critical thinking, reflection, and generate new ways of understanding.
The award in each category is $750. Applications typically open in January and submissions are due the first week in March.
Eligibility: Enrolled KU undergraduates are eligible to apply.
Submissions for the 2026 awards are due March 9 at midnight.
LB Quotation
“There is a deep and almost sacred beauty in literature and in art. Each may deal with the abstract and each may involve interpretation, but each has its own reality that permits the mind to explore and to soar.”
Lavon Brosseau
Writing Award
The Writing Award recognizes outstanding artistic, literary, scientific, historical, technological, or political writing, or a combination of these and other approaches. We seek projects that demonstrate creativity in terms of the writing, ideas, and possible research, as well as collaboration. Projects may have an audio or visual aspect, but the primary aspect should be the writing. Collaborative and interdisciplinary work is encouraged. Depending on the chosen field, the project may comprise one example or one set of examples of the student’s creativity. Submissions will be evaluated on the basis of the creative project as well as the additional written statement that accompanies it.
2026 Recipient: Wyatt Vaughn
Wyatt Vaughn of Olathe was recognized for his poetry project “Rubric Refuted.” Vaughn said he intended to create a tangible product that rubrics from his studies in engineering and creative writing would fail to evaluate by experimenting with form and imagery. “‘Rubric Refuted’ is a testament and progress check for my college experience despite the tension between my academic fields,” he said. Vaughn is a junior majoring in English and chemical engineering who previously received an honorable mention for his 2025 submission for the Brosseau Awards.
Diverse Media Award
The Diverse Media Award recognizes outstanding creative work in any medium other than writing (although projects may contain a written component). Submissions may include—but are not limited to—research posters, architectural models, original works of art, musical compositions or performances, and film production. Collaborative and interdisciplinary work is encouraged. Depending on the chosen field, the project may comprise one example or one set of examples of the student’s creativity. Submissions will be evaluated on the basis of the creative project as well as the written statement that accompanies it.
2026 Recipient: Duncan
Duncan of Overland Park was recognized for her musical composition “Reverie – For Cello Ensemble.” For this project Duncan said she wanted to push the boundaries of chamber music. “I was looking to maximize agency, authenticity, and individuality in each performance, so I decided on inventing my own notation system meant to further reinforce the meditative experience for both musicians and listeners,” she said. Duncan is a senior in music composition.
Submit your application
Applications for the 2026 awards are due March 9 at midnight.
Application Materials
A complete application includes the following materials:
- Completed online application form
- Writing project (2,500 words maximum) OR Diverse Media project (3–4 images max or 15 minutes max for time-based media; or audio/visual documentation of the project)
- Statement describing how the project represents the student’s creativity, development of ideas, and approach to form (350 words maximum)
- Recommendation form submitted by a faculty or GTA sponsor in support of the project
Complete the online application form to submit your creative work for these awards.
Contact
If you have any questions about the Brosseau Creativity Awards please reach out.