Frequently Asked Questions

How to Submit

To submit, students must first have a teacher/educator, parent, or guardian register on their behalf. Only adults may register. After completing their registration, the adult will receive a submission code. Teacher/educators, parents/caregivers, or students (with help from adults) can then use the code to upload student submissions through the online submission form.

Each submission should include the student’s work, media file, and a short description written by the student. If you are submitting a video file, make sure the first frame is what you would like your preview image to look like.

Adults may register using the form on the Register page.

Adults who register should receive their submission code via the email they entered on the registration form. If you don’t receive it, please check your spam or junk folder. If you still cannot find it, contact us at TapestryOfNY@wnet.org. 

Students of any age may submit with the help of a teacher/educator, parent, or guardian. Parental consent is required in the following circumstances:

  • If a parent or legal guardian is registering, parental consent is required for all children under 13 years of age. This consent is part of the online registration process. 
  • If a teacher/educator is registering, a signed Parent Release Form is required in the following circumstances:
    • For students under 13 years of age: A signed Parental Release Form is required.
    • For students ages 13 through 17:
      • If school has a directory information policy that covers this personal information and parent/guardian has not opted out of the policy:  No Parental Release Form is needed.
      • If school does not have an applicable directory information policy or parent/guardian has opted out of the policy:  A signed Parental Release Form is required.  

Teachers do not need to upload these forms; just keep them on file in a safe place. 

Who Can Submit

We welcome submissions from K–12 students across New York State, including those in:

  • Public, private, and charter schools
  • Homeschool programs
  • Libraries, museums, and after-school programs
  • Community and youth organizations

Students may participate through a teacher or program leader, who submits work on their behalf. Parents or caregivers may also help students submit work.

Students of any age may submit with the help of a teacher/educator, parent, or guardian. Parental consent is required in the following circumstances:

  • If a parent or legal guardian is registering, parental consent is required for all children under 13 years of age. This consent is part of the online registration process. 
  • If a teacher/educator is registering, a signed Parent Release Form is required in the following circumstances:
    • For students under 13 years of age: A signed Parental Release Form is required.
    • For students ages 13 through 17:
      • If school has a directory information policy that covers this personal information and parent/guardian has not opted out of the policy:  No Parental Release Form is needed.
      • If school does not have an applicable directory information policy or parent/guardian has opted out of the policy:  A signed Parental Release Form is required.  

Teachers do not need to upload these forms; just keep them on file in a safe place. 

Submission Rules and Requirements

We encourage submissions in a range of visual art or media formats, including:

  • Collages
  • Drawings
  • Paintings
  • Photography
  • Digital graphics
  • Video
  • Multimedia artwork

One image file (jpg, png, webp – max 4MB) or video file (mp4, movie, webm – max 512MB) per submission will be accepted. Videos can be either portrait (vertical) or landscape (horizontal). If you are submitting a video file, make sure the first frame is what you would like your preview image to look like.

Students should only submit work that they created themselves without the use of AI (artificial intelligence). If the project includes photos, videos, text, music, or artwork made by someone else (also known as another person’s “intellectual property” or “IP”)—or shows other people—you need to make sure you have their permission first. Keep a written record of their permission, such as a signed note, agreement or email.  This helps protect everyone’s rights and keeps the platform safe and respectful. More information about intellectual property rights can be found here. If you’re unsure, check with a teacher, parent, or guardian before submitting.

Certain federal and state laws protect the sharing and disclosure of student and child personal information, including the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”), the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”) and New York Education Law § 2-d (“NY Ed. Law § 2-d”). In compliance with these laws, parental consent is required in the following circumstances: 

  • If a parent or legal guardian is registering, parental consent is required for all children under 13 years of age. This consent is part of the online registration process. 
  • If a teacher/educator is registering, a signed Parent Release Form is required in the following circumstances:
    • For students under 13 years of age: A signed Parental Release Form is required.
    • For students ages 13 through 17:
      • If school has a directory information policy that covers this personal information and parent/guardian has not opted out of the policy:  No Parental Release Form is needed.
      • If school does not have an applicable directory information policy or parent/guardian has opted out of the policy:  A signed Parental Release Form is required.  

Teachers do not need to upload these forms; just keep them on file in a safe place. 

Please view our Privacy Policy for more information.

Review Process

All submissions will be reviewed by project staff. When approved, student work will be published to the public showcase on this website. Submitters will be notified via email only if their submission is not approved, and will be able to revise and submit their work again.  

We hope to include as many submissions as possible. All submissions will be reviewed for possible inclusion in the tapestry with the following considerations in mind: 

  • Submissions should reflect respectful tone and language, ensuring that the dignity of all is uplifted as part of the project’s mission to embrace diversity and unity across New York State. 
  • Submissions need to be original creations by individual students, without the use of AI (artificial intelligence).  
  • Permission will be obtained from the rights holder for any copyrighted third-party content (i.e., music, photographs, artwork, or commercial products with logos) included, or from any people whose image, audio, or video appears in the student’s work.  
  • Submissions should be clearly relevant to the historical themes outlined in on this webpage under “Theme: We the People.” 
  • Submissions should be a work of visual art or media (strictly text-based works or audio-only submissions will not be accepted), with an accompanying clear written statement. 
  • Submissions should not reveal any personal or identifying details of the artist or other individuals. 

Reasons submissions may be declined include (but are not limited to) the following: 

  • The content appears to be generated by AI (artificial intelligence.) 
  • The work includes vulgar, offensive, or inappropriate material, such as hate speech or threats of violence. 
  • The work does not appear to be relevant to the historical themes outlined in this Call for Submissions. 
  • The submission is not a work of visual art or media (for example, strictly text-based works or audio-only submissions will not be accepted.) 
  • The work or written statement reveals personal details that should not be included for the safety of minors involved. 
  • The written statement is not comprehensible (for example, it is made up of nonsensical words or characters.)  
  • The work appears to include copyrighted third-party content that has not been cleared, such as someone else’s music, photographs, artwork, or commercial products with logos. See more about securing permission. 

We limit the sharing of personal details to protect the identity of minors participating in the project.

Submissions will be accepted any time from June – December 2026. 

How Works Are Published

All submissions will be reviewed by project staff. When approved, student work will be published to the online gallery on this website, where anyone with internet access will be able to view it. Students, parents/guardians, and educators will be able to share work with friends, family, and community members using the unique URL of the work on our website. 

In addition to the work itself, the title of the work, student creator’s first name and first initial of their last name, (unless they have requested that the work to be displayed anonymously), grade range, school/institution, school or school district, city or town, homeschooling status, genre/medium of the work, and artist statement will be displayed on the website. This information will allow viewers to search and filter to find works in their community or of similar genres/mediums.

Students will retain ownership of any artwork or media they create and submit to the Tapestry of New York.

If you no longer wish to have your artwork or media displayed on the Tapestry of New York website, you can email us at TapestryOfNY@wnet.org to request that it be removed.

STILL HAVE MORE QUESTIONS? If you have additional questions, please contact us at TapestryOfNY@wnet.org.