November 10, 2005
Beautify Southern Illinois sponsoring contest
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Kindergarten through 12th grade students can contribute environmental values to all generations in a November slogan-logo-essay contest sponsored by the Beautify Southern Illinois Campaign.
The goal of the contest is to gain a new slogan and logo and develop an understanding of what a younger generation thinks about the environment in Southern Illinois.
The current slogan and logo of the campaign is, "To Make Southern Illinois the Cleanest Part of This State… and Keep It That Way" with a cartoon drawing of a janitor sweeping the Southern Illinois region clean. It can be seen on the campaign's Web site at www.beautifysouthernillinois.org.
The contest is under way and ends on Nov. 22. Students may place entries in each individual category or all three categories.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale's Center for Environmental Health and Safety is assisting in the regional campaign, founded by former SIU Board of Trustees Chair Glenn Poshard.
Serving others is among the goals of Southern at 150: Building Excellence Through Commitment, the blueprint for the development of the University by the time it observes its 150th anniversary in 2019.
All participants will receive a certificate of participation on recyclable paper signed by Poshard.
Participating schools will choose winners from each category in the region-wide contest. Each school-selected winner will receive a gift certificate award.
A committee appointed by Poshard will review the school-selected winner entries, with the announcement of the region-wide winner in these categories set for Nov. 30. The Southern Illinoisan newspaper will publish winning entries with an accompanying article about the winners.
"Education is essential to the quality of life in Southern Illinois and this is another opportunity to educate future generations about the importance of protecting the beauty of our environment. Please help the campaign by encouraging our youth to participate," Poshard said.
Kathy Lively, the executive director of Man-Tra-Con and assistant chairperson of the campaign, is the coordinator of the contest.
"The contest is a way to connect young people to the environment," said Lively.
This contest will help the campaign achieve its goal of developing a comprehensive long-range strategy for assisting Southern Illinois schools implementing educational initiatives, to create positive environmental awareness and participation in maintaining a clean community.
For more information or to contribute donations, please contact Kathy Lively at kathylively@mantracon.org or 618/998-0970, extension 237.