Printable Rules and Entry Form (3 page .pdf)
Entry From Only (1 page .pdf)
Submission Deadline: Friday, April 12, 2019
Contest Theme
The 2019 Youth Conservation Poster Contest topic is Life in the Soil: Dig Deeper. This title must be on the poster for it to be eligible for judging.
Soil is a dirty topic, but everyone needs to learn more about it! Soil is the foundation for many of the items we use in our daily life, such as food, clothing, clean water, homes and more. Healthy soil produces healthy food; healthy food produces healthy people! One characteristic of healthy soil is the presence of a diverse community of living things, including earthworms, insects and other arthropods, protozoans, fungi, and bacteria. How we treat the soil affects how many and what types of organisms can live there, so don’t treat your soil like dirt! We invite you to learn more about soil life, and about the conservation practices that promote soil health. The, create a poster to show others what you’ve learned about life in the soil!
Eligibility
The National Conservation Poster Contest is open to students in grades K-12. Richland County students should submit their posters to the Richland Soil and Water Conservation District for local judging by Friday, April 12, 2019; students in other counties in SC should contact their local conservation district for entry deadlines and details.
Rules
- NEW RULE: Due to a new rule at the national level of competition, posters MUST be 14”x 22”. We can provide up to 24 sheets of 14”x22” poster paper per school; contact Chanda Cooper at cooper.chanda@richlandcountysc.gov to request supplies.
- Any media may be used to create a flat or two-dimensional effect, including paint, marker, ink, crayon, charcoal, colored pencil, stickers, collage, wallpaper, magazines, photos, digitally-designed graphics or flat objects found in nature.
- Posters should be packaged so they remain flat when sent for judging.
- All posters must be created by an individual student rather than a team of students.
- The 2019 contest topic (Life in the Soil: Dig Deeper) must be on the poster.
- Attach a signed entry form to the back of the poster. Student or school names must not appear on the front of the poster.
- Entry must be contestant's original creation and may not be traced from photographs or other artists' published works.
Recommendations
- Posters should present a simple, concise visual message, similar to a billboard or bumper sticker. As much as possible, limit text to the contest topic (Life in the Soil: Dig Deeper); additional text can be difficult to read and complicates the message.
- The contest topic (Life in the Soil: Dig Deeper) should be in bold, clear, unique text at the top or bottom of the poster, above or below the illustration; OR the slogan can be incorporated into the illustration, but the words should stand out.
- Text should be large enough to be easily read.
- Avoid fluorescent-colored posters.
Evaluation
Posters will be evaluated by grade level according to the following criteria:
- Conservation Message: poster illustrates what lives in the soil, why soil life is important, and/or how we can promote healthy soil through conservation practices. (50%)
- Visual Effectiveness: poster attracts attention, uses colors and white space effectively, is easy to read, is neat, and makes good use of colors and shading. (30%)
- Originality (10%)
- Universal Appeal: information conveyed on poster is relevant around the world. (10%)
Submission
Posters completed by Richland County students should be delivered to the Richland Soil and Water Conservation District by Friday, April 12, 2019. Posters may be dropped off in person or mailed. Posters should be packaged to remain flat when sent for judging.
Richland Soil and Water Conservation District
2020 Hampton Street, Room 3063A
Columbia, SC 29204
Phone: (803) 576-2080
Fax: (803) 576-2088
E-mail: cooper.chanda@richlandcountysc.gov
Competition Progression and Awards
Richland County winners will progress to the state competition; state winners will progress to the national competition. Cash prizes will be awarded at each level.
- County Competition—Sponsored by the Richland Soil and Water Conservation District
- Prizes: Minimum $25 prizes will be awarded to winning posters in each of five grade level categories (Grades K-1; 2-3; 4-6; 7-9; 10-12).
- State Competition—Sponsored by the SC Association of Conservation Districts
- Prizes: $25 prizes will be awarded to winning posters in each of five grade level categories (Grades K-1; 2-3; 4-6; 7-9; 10-12).
- National Competition—Sponsored by the National Association of Conservation Districts
- Prizes: First place posters in each grade-level category (Grades K-1; 2-3; 4-6; 7-9; 10-12) will receive $200; second place posters will receive $150; and third-place posters will receive $100. Monetary prizes at the national level are sponsored by the National Association of Conservation Districts Auxiliary and the Albert I. Pierce Foundation.
Printable Rules and Entry Form (3 page .pdf)
Entry From Only (1 page .pdf)
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Conservation Districts are political subdivisions of state government under the local direction of five-member Boards of Commissioners. In South Carolina, Conservation District boundaries conform to County boundaries. The Richland Soil and Water Conservation District promotes the wise use and care of natural resources for long-term sustainability.
Contact
Richland Soil and Water Conservation District
2020 Hampton Street, Room 3063A
Columbia, SC 29204
Phone (803) 576-2080
Fax (803) 576-2088
E-mail soilandwater@rcgov.us
Facebook www.facebook.com/rswcd