Richard Montgomery High School senior David Wolff won a second-level award in the voice category of the annual Arts, Recognition and Talent Search (ARTS), one of the most prestigious arts competitions for high school seniors in the nation.

The ARTS competition, sponsored by the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts, recognizes outstanding performing, literary and visual artists with scholarships and financial support toward their continued arts education.

Wolff, a baritone, was selected from among 6,000 original applicants for one of 100 spots to audition and perform during National ARTS Week in Miami in January. Among the 10 finalists in the singing category, he was one of two who received a second prize of $1,500.

The top students in each of the arts areas have the opportunity to compete for the Presidential Scholar in the Arts award later in the year.

Wolff credits his Richard Montgomery music teacher, Ron Frezzo, and Charles Williams, his voice teacher at the Levine School of music, for having the most significant influence on his development as a vocalist.

Although they were not selected to attend ARTS Week, other Montgomery County Public Schools students also received recognition. ARTS finalists from Maryland include organist Stephen Kalnoske of Walt Whitman High School in the music category. Visual arts finalists include Carol Schmitz from Montgomery Blair High School; Katie Hillesland, Daniel Lane, Samuel Miller, Tara Niemann and Ryan Smith from Albert Einstein High School; Matt Handler and Jennifer Sage from Poolesville High School; and Caitlin Hewitt, Jacob King, and Miranda Smith from Walt Whitman High School.