The community college classes were taken during middle school. And the awards were won in middle school. While this makes all of her achievements all the more impressive, I remember reading your previous posts and worrying about the situation a little. Middle school is just pretty early for that kind of focus, and since you were thinking about college already (prematurely, as you have learned), art may have become associated in some subtle way with outside pressure rather than inner drive and passion. Her love for it may return but the wisest thing would be to leave her to it.
She may be smart in not wanting to have her art be a matter for grading and judging, and that may also result from her doing art so early for grades and awards. Better to do art on the kitchen table for herself for awhile.
Like many young teens, it sounds like she is also very influenced by surroundings and by peers. So her school is a factor perhaps. If her love of art resurfaces and she expresses frustration, she could always go to a school with a better art program. But remember in the arts, instruction is not always the essential thing. An artist of whatever genre can continue to do art no matter where they are, at the level they are capable of, regardless of the quality of the program. I really believe that, at least at the high school level. Our school was a lousy public and several kids went on to art school and career. All she has to do is submit a portfolio, or arts supplement to the common app.
Most of all, stop thinking about college admissions for a couple of years. Just stop entirely. Wait until it is her concern, not yours. I think of our kids’ interests as waves that we help them ride, purely for the sake of developing. Not for anyone else’s eyes or ears or whatever and not for colleges. If you counterbalance the previous pressures, she can evolve naturally and will, I assure you, end up at a school that is good for her.
Career concerns can wait a very long time. I am not sure why she is thinking about career as a freshman. College majors don’t always match careers. And major can be chosen at the end of sophomore year- a long way away.
It seems like a very old story that the precocious wunderkind child stops doing the thing entirely. I have seen it with piano prodigies, writers, and dancers. Sometimes they return on their own terms, sometimes not.
I have written this in a few places so apologies for repeating it, but don’t fit the child to schools, find schools that fit the child She’ll be fine.
ps I once said at a middle school parents meeting, where some parents wanted more homework, that really, I thought the kids needed to eat, sleep and grow and maybe not do much else!