CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Moira Burke, a ninth-grader at St. Angela Merici School in Fairview Park, recently won first place in the Ohio Federation of Soil & Water Conservation Districts’ “Healthy Forests, Healthy Communities” state poster contest.
Moira’s artwork, judged best in the seventh- to ninth-grade category, next heads to the national competition in February.
The Cuyahoga Soil & Water Conservation District sent a number of other competitors to the state competition. Natalie Hooper and Andrew Studeny, both of whom also attend St. Angela Merici School, finished near the top.
Natalie took second place in the fourth- to sixth-grade category and Andrew won third place in the second- to third-grade group.
Anna Buhrow, a student at the Beaumont School in Cleveland Heights, won third place in the category for grades 10 to 12. Jaxon Dea, a pupil at Charles A. Mooney School in Cleveland, was a second-place finisher in the grades K-1 group.
According to Jacki Zevenbergen, stormwater education program manager with the Cuyahoga Soil & Water Conservation District, the contest is meant to link art and creative thinking with science.
“The whole idea is to get the kids to think about the topic and do the posters to express what they have learned,” Zevenbergen said.
As the lone first-place winner from Cuyahoga County, Moira’s artwork will next be scrutinized by officials from the National Association of Conservation Districts and the NACD Auxiliary.
The Cuyahoga Soil & Water Conservation District is already planning for the 2022 contest, featuring the theme “Healthy Soils, Healthy Life.”
The artworks are submitted digitally. Winners are chosen by district pros, then head to the state competition. Students who place in the top three at state receive a monetary award.
Students throughout the county can begin working on their masterpieces on or after George Washington Carver’s birthday, Monday, Jan. 1. Teachers must register classes online by Thursday, April 1, which marks the beginning of Ohio Native Plant Month. The artworks need to be submitted by 6 p.m. Friday, April 22, which is -- appropriately enough -- Earth Day.
Detailed instructions will be available in January at www.cuyahogaswcd.org.
For more information about the contest or to request a presentation, contact Zevenbergen at 216-524-6580, extension 1006, or jzevenbergen@cuyahogaswcd.org.
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