Dec. 20, 2001 – The Nature of the Islands: Plants and Animals of the Caribbean is the theme of an environmental poster contest that V.I. students are invited to compete in.
The sponsor, Florida Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA), invites local students to participate in the 2002 FCCA Foundation for the Caribbean Children's Environmental Poster Competition.
The competition has two divisions, with the following rules and guidelines:
Junior Division – open to students 12 and under (may not have had 13th birthday by March 15, 2002).
Senior Division – open to students 13 to 16 years of age (may not have passed 17th birthday by March 16, 2002).
The FCCA seeks to promote and stimulate environmental awareness and creativity among Caribbean students, while providing a medium to educate persons outside the Caribbean, a release said. To meet these criteria,
—Each student must submit one poster, depicting at least three each of plants and animals of the Caribbean and the effect each has on the environment.
—Words may be used to highlight the ideas illustrated.
—Posters should be on standard size (22" x 28") poster board.
—Posters may be in color, black and white, or a collage; and may be done in whatever medium the entrant chooses (i.e., paint, watercolors, etc.)
—Entries will be judged on the following: creativity, relevance to the theme, content, quality of the presentation (layout/design).
—Each entry must be accompanied by the following information: country, name of student, student's date of birth, student's address and telephone number, name and address of school, name of school principal and school's telephone number.
Interested students are asked to contact their respective school offices to obtain packages, or the V.I. Department of Tourism at 774-8784, 773-0495, or 776-6450.
Teachers and staff/selection committee for each school will choose two winners, one from each category. Each school must submit their entries by Jan. 14, 2002 to their country's selection committee. The committee will choose one winner from each age category to be sent to the FCCA by Jan. 21, 2002. The FCCA selection committee will determine first, second and third place winners for the two age categories, and all winners will be notified by Feb. 4, 2002.
First, second and third-place winners from each category will receive monetary rewards of $2,500, $1,500 and $1,000, and their school will receive art supplies. The two first-place winners will be invited to Florida on March 14, 2002, for a gala dinner, with all travel expenses for student and a chaperon to be paid by FCCA. Additionally, both first-place winners' class will be treated to a tour and lunch aboard a FCCA member line cruise ship while it is in port in their island of residents.
To reward students for their efforts, FCCA will award $200 to all country-level finalists except the three top placers.