Thornton Wilder Playwriting Scholarship Launched to Support Student Playwrights

The Educational Theatre Foundation has partnered with the Wilder Estate on the new program.

March 25, 2026 By Meg Masseron

In partnership with the Wilder family, The Educational Theatre Foundation (ETF) has launched the Thornton Wilder Playwriting Scholarship, a new national scholarship recognizing and supporting an outstanding student dramatist each year.

Beginning this year, the scholarship will award a $1,500 college scholarship to a promising young playwright, celebrating exceptional achievement in student playwriting while fostering the next generation of theatrical voices. The prize is an expression of Wilder’s belief that literature is a relay race, and artists should offer inspiration and encouragement to the people who come after them.

"Thornton Wilder adored teaching and turned a classroom into a stage—walking around, adjusting the shades, playing parts. His goal was to draw the best out of his students, imploring them to 'write nothing but what you believe,’" said Thornton Wilder's nephew Tappan Wilder in a statement. "The Wilder Family is proud to continue his legacy—and his challenge—to the playwrights of tomorrow through this award."

Thornton Wilder is the only writer to win Pulitzer Prizes for both drama (Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth) and fiction (The Bridge of San Luis Rey). Hello, Dolly! is based on his play The Matchmaker.

“The Thornton Wilder Playwriting Scholarship is a powerful tribute to a writer who believed deeply in the responsibility artists have to one another,” adds EdTA Director Janie Slavens. “We are honored to partner with the Wilder Family to champion young playwrights and ensure their voices are heard, supported, and celebrated.”

The scholarship will be awarded through ETF’s national Thespian program, further expanding opportunities for student artists to develop their craft and pursue higher education in the arts. Applicants must be graduating seniors who received a superior rating in their qualifying Thespy Playwriting competition. Applications will be accepted April 1-30 annually.

ETF is the philanthropic arm of the Educational Theatre Association, an international non-profit that serves as the professional association for theatre educators. EdTA is also the parent organization of the International Thespian Society—an honor society for theatre students that has inducted more than 2.5 million Thespians since 1929. Additionally, EdTA operates the Educational Theatre Foundation, the organization's philanthropic branch dedicated to broadening representation and increasing access.

For more information about the Thornton Wilder Playwriting Scholarship and application details, visit here. To learn more about participating in the Thespys, visit here.