TxDOT, Keep Texas Beautiful Announce Winners of Don’t mess with Texas® Elementary School Art Contest

MAY 25, 2016

STUDENTS’ WINNING ARTWORK TO BE FEATURED IN 2017 LITTER-PREVENTION CALENDAR

AUSTIN — Keep Texas Beautiful and the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) announced 13 winners for this year’s Don’t mess with Texas® Elementary School Art Contest. The winning entries came from across the state, and the winning designs will appear in the 2017 Don’t mess with Texas® Calendar.

The contest is a joint effort by TxDOT and Keep Texas Beautiful to motivate young Texans to not litter and to encourage others to keep Texas roadways and the environment free from trash. The contest was open to Texas elementary school students enrolled in kindergarten through fifth grade and sponsored by H-E-B and Central Market.

“It’s such a pleasure to see the talent demonstrated by some of our state’s youngest artists,” said Suzanne Kho, executive director of Keep Texas Beautiful. “It wasn’t easy narrowing the entries down to just 13 winning designs, but we’re excited to share the winning art with all Texans to remind them to put litter where it belongs—in a trash can.”

An impressive 6,460 elementary school students from 154 Texas communities showed off their artistic talent by submitting entries. Students selected to have their artwork featured in the calendar include:

  • Kindergartener Mihika Gupta of McCoy Elementary in Carrollton, whose artwork will be featured as the calendar cover.
  • Kindergartener Sophia Haynes of Eleanor Kolitz Hebrew Language Academy in San Antonio.
  • First-grader Avery Nisbet of Windsor Park Elementary in Corpus Christi.
  • First-grader Jacob Esquilin of Windsor Park Elementary in Corpus Christi.
  • Second-grader Eric Zhang of Roosevelt Alexander Elementary in Katy.
  • Second-grader Syrus Gupta of Greenhill School in Addison.
  • Third-grader Jaycee Esters of North Zulch Elementary/Secondary in North Zulch.
  • Third-grader Sophia Young of Armstrong Elementary in Dallas.
  • Fourth-grader Adam Roth of White Rock Montessori in Dallas.
  • Fourth-grader Brandy Quiroga of PFC Mario Ybarra Elementary in Weslaco.
  • Fourth-grader Kristin Madison of Hillcrest Elementary in Nederland.
  • Fifth-grader Fernanda Nuñez-Flores of Pattison Elementary in Katy.
  • Fifth-grader Hannah Choi of Dallas Arts Studio in Dallas.

Contest rules asked students to submit artwork that promoted the Don’t mess with Texas®or Keep Texas Beautiful litter prevention slogans. Artwork was judged on creativity and uniqueness, inclusion of litter prevention message, overall visual appeal, composition and age appropriateness.

Twelve of the winning designs will be assigned to a month and placed in the 2017 Don’t mess with Texas® Calendar. Kindergartener Gupta’s artwork was chosen from among the 13 winning entries to be featured on the calendar cover. Each winner will receive an iDeaUSA 8 tablet donated by H-E-B and Central Market.

“We’re always so inspired by the creativity of the students who submit their artwork,” said Joan Henderson, Travel Information Director at the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). “We’re proud that this contest motivates young Texans to think about litter and the importance of keeping our state beautiful, and we’re honored to highlight the talent of all of our winners in our 2017 calendar.”

All student winners will be showcased on the Don’t mess with Texas® and Keep Texas Beautiful websites. Teachers representing students who produce the top 13 designs will win a $100 H-E-B and Central Market gift card.

More information is available at www.DontMesswithTexas.org.

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Keep Texas Beautiful
Keep Texas Beautiful (KTB), a statewide grassroots environmental and community improvement organization and affiliate of Keep America Beautiful, strives to educate and engage Texans to take responsibility for improving their community environment. KTB and its more than 390 affiliates work with government, businesses, civic groups and volunteers to ensure that every Texan has the opportunity to take individual responsibility for making Texas the cleanest, most beautiful state in the nation. For more information about KTB, visit www.ktb.org, follow us on Twitter at @keeptxbeautiful and like us on Facebook at @keeptxbeautiful.

Texas Department of Transportation
The Texas Department of Transportation is responsible for maintaining 80,000 miles of road and for supporting aviation, rail, and public transportation across the state. Through collaboration and leadership, TxDOT delivers a safe, reliable, and integrated transportation system that enables the movement of people and goods. Find out more at txdot.gov. “Like” us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.