Marley Mikovich, a graduating senior at Panther Valley High School, is this year's recipient of the Vincent Van Gogh Award.

"I select a senior graduate from my art classes every year and award a monetary amount to one exceptional student," says art teacher Kimberlee Burkett, who created the award. "It is based on a passion for the arts and creative problem solving, work ethic, kindness toward peers and respect for authority."Burkett said in selecting a student, his or her work is evaluated with "out of the box" idea formations, with the requirements of a letter of worthiness.In an excerpt from her letter, Marley said "Ever since I was a little girl, art has been a huge part of my life. Lucky for me, my whole family is pretty artistic, so art projects were pretty common in my house, and I knew that one day I would grow up and incorporate art into my career. "Marley will attend Lehigh Carbon Community College in the fall and then transfer to Temple University to study historic preservation."Historic preservation is the process of fixing old homes and buildings. Along with loving art, I also love antiques ... Some people just pass by historic homes or old furniture and say its junk, but to me, those items are beautiful," she says."I picture them in a different light, with a new porch or a fresh coat of paint. Being artistic is something that I can describe myself as all the time and I am always willing to learn new things."