SOCIAL CIRCLE, GEORGIA - Twelve elementary school children have been selected as statewide winners in the Give Wildlife a Chance Poster Contest, the Georgia Wildlife Resources Division recently announced. More than 4,900 kindergarten through 5th-grade students from 37 public schools, private schools and home-school groups participated in the 20th anniversary of the conservation art competition.
Statewide winners in the four grade divisions included:
Kindergarten
1st place: Rebekkah Carpenter, Tiftarea Academy, Chula, Ga.
2nd place: Isabell Adair, Centralhatchee Elementary, Franklin, Ga.
3rd place: Emily Israels, Pate's Creek Elementary, Stockbridge, Ga.
1st-2nd grade
1st place: Jordan Sullivan, Dacula Academy, Dacula, Ga.
2nd place: Sybille Foucart, St. Joseph Catholic School, Athens, Ga.
3rd place: Ethan Cochran, Maranatha Christian Academy, Oakwood, Ga.
3rd-4th grade
1st place: Mattie Allen, East Newton Elementary, Covington, Ga.
2nd place: Sarah Grace Rogers, Ephesus Elementary, Roopville, Ga.
3rd place: Christa Anderson, Royston Elementary, Royston, Ga.
5th grade
1st place: Elxus Spradlin, Heard County Elementary, Franklin, Ga.
2nd place: Willie Taylor, Bleckley Elementary, Cochran, Ga.
3rd place: Max Gilbert, Old Peachtree Montessori, Auburn, Ga.
The artwork of these 12 winners will be showcased in the 2010-2011 Give Wildlife a Chance Poster Contest calendar. All state-level entries are on display at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia in Athens April 5-19.
Participants entered the contest at the local school level with drawings depicting their observations of Georgia's native plants and animals, and following the 2010 contest theme, "The Future of Georgia's Wildlife is in YOUR Hands." Drawings were judged based on aspects such as theme, originality and the quality and impact of the artwork. Top school-level entries proceeded to the state contest at The State Botanical Garden of Georgia in Athens.
2010 poster contest sponsors include the Wildlife Resources Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, The State Botanical Garden of Georgia and The Environmental Resources Network Inc. (TERN).
For more information on the annual Give Wildlife a Chance Poster Contest, visit www.georgiawildlife.com or www.uga.edu/botgarden, or contact the Wildlife Resources Division's Nongame Conservation Section at 116 Rum Creek Drive, Forsyth, Ga. 31029, (478) 994-1438.
Georgians can support important conservation, recreation and education efforts like the Give Wildlife a Chance Poster Contest as well as other conservation programs for Georgia's nongame wildlife by purchasing a nongame wildlife license plate for their vehicles or by donating to the Georgia Wildlife Conservation Fund state income tax checkoff.
