TAMPA – It’s been said that young people, particularly those who are on the verge of graduating from high school, represent the hope and promise for this nation’s future.
With that in mind, the Art Institute of Tampa is asking high school seniors and those who recently graduated to share their thoughts on what they can do to create a better, more hopeful tomorrow for this country.
The Art Institute of Tampa has an ongoing partnership with the non-profit arts advocacy group called Americans for the Arts, and the two just issued a call for entries for the ninth annual Poster Design Competition, which will be held in 2012. It calls on high school seniors and recent graduates to take up the challenge and design a poster that best expresses the competition’s main theme: “You Can Create Tomorrow”
This year’s competition is open to students from high schools that are in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, asking them to design and submit a poster that most creatively captures that theme. The contestants will be competing in two different categories, high school senior and high school graduate/adult.
The winner can expect to get far more than just recognition of their creative or artistic talent — cash. The local winner in the high school senior category will be awarded a $3,000 scholarship, and the local second place winner in that category a $1,000 scholarship, to the Art Institute of Tampa. The local first place winner in the high school graduate category will earn a $1,000 scholarship to the institute.
It is, institute officials say, a great way to test the creativity among students who are gearing up for college or to pursue a higher degree. Past winner, they noted, have excelled in the poster design.
“We are inspired by the creativity that students exhibit in the artwork they create for this competition, and believe that this scholarship competition helps some of our most talented students achieve their goals,” said Louise Stienkeoway, president of the Art Institute of Tampa.
The institute is a branch of Miami International University of Art & Design. Americans for the Arts is a non-profit organization that works to advance the arts and arts education. The two recently got together to announce that entries for the 2012 Poster Design Competition will be accepted through Feb. 3, 2012.
This year marks the first time the competition has been open to high school graduates, as well as high school seniors.
This is just the start of a much longer competition. The local first place winners in each category will go on to compete in the National Poster Design Competition, with the national grand prize winner in the high school senior category earning a full-tuition scholarship to an Art Institutes school of their choice.
The national grand prize winner in the high school graduate category will get a $10,000 tuition scholarship to an Art Institutes school.
To learn more about the Art Institutes, log on to www.artinstitutes.edu.
The Art Institutes is a system of more than 45 educational institutions throughout North America, providing an academic source for students looking for a career in fields such as design, media arts, fashion and culinary arts.
The Art Institute of Tampa is located at Tampa Bay Park, 4401 N. Himes Ave., Suite 150. To learn more, call 1-813-873-2112 or 1-866-703-3277. The institute will be holding an open house on Wednesday, Dec. 28, and will be introducing a new Master of Arts degree in Design & Media Management, an 18-month program that is being described on the institute’s web site as “designed by creatives, for creatives.”
Check-in for the open house begins at 10:30 a.m., with a presentation at 11 a.m.
“See for yourself a place where talent can become so much more,” the institute’s web site notes of the open house. “The world changes fast. Learn how you can stay ahead of the curve and gain the skills to set the tone. Get your foot in the door and see how far you can go.”
Included in the open house will be a tour of the institute’s numerous facilities, an opportunity to chat with students, faculty, and staff, and a chance to learn about student services, scholarship opportunities, grants, financial aid, and the application process.
Americans for the Arts has offices in Washington, D.C. and New York City and has been in operation for more than 50 years. The organization is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for people to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts. To learn more, log on to www.AmericansForTheArts.org.
Contact us at FreelineOrlando@Gmail.com.
