CCISD News

Area Students Win Top Honors at Regional and Area Art Competitions

March 11, 2006

Twenty-nine Clear Creek I.S.D. art students won area medals and will move on to the state Texas Art Education Association Visual Art Scholastic Event at the eastern regional and area VASE held at MacArthur High School in the Aldine School District Feb. 11. One hundred seventy-six CCISD students won regional medals. Two hundred sixty-four CCISD students received certificates of merit. These students competed against over 1300 other Region 4 students in the regional event which was held in the morning. The area event was held in the afternoon.

* Regional medallists also received a superior rating in the regional VASE.
** Area medallists advance to the state VASE.

"There are three specific levels: the regional level, the area level, and the state level," said Joey Dole, the state VASE director.

Dole said that there are not many art contests in the United States and that they are fairly subjective with only a limited set of criteria for evaluation. He said that VASE scoring is unique because there are no winners or losers and students are rated based on an objective grading rubric developed from the national standards for art education.

Students are judged on originality, skill, knowledge of the state standards for art education and ability to verbally explain the intent of their piece to the judges (jurors). Each piece is awarded a superior, excellent, average or below average rating.

"Every student that receives a superior rating based on that rubric receives a medallion and has an opportunity to advance to the next level," Doyle said.

The state VASE competition will take place at the University of Houston - Clear Lake on April 7 and 8 and is also a Texas Art Education Association Event. Students will be rated according to the same standards applied at regional competition but will not be interviewed. Those students who win a superior rating at the state event will receive state medallions. Each student that is rated exemplary will receive a “Gold Seal” medallion, the top award at this event.

The following "superior" students will go forward to the state competition:

Clear Brook High School

Therese Nguyen, Jinju Park, Rachel Flores, Anna Glanton, Kristina Gray, Brenda Melgar, Darren Davis and Nhi Huynh

Clear Creek High School

Sarah Poore, Katie Hammack, Kristal Warren, Bethany Fletcher, Alex Mair, Sarah Carter, Jesse Cline, Carmela Dailey, Daphne Dodd, Nolan Ginsberg, Lauren Henriksen, Jarred Johnson, Varvara Larionova, Samantha Laughbaum, Daniel Martinez (2 entries), Matt Mushinski and Kevin Retherford.

Clear Lake High School

Kristen Boyd, Kristen Ferguson, Allison Peterson and Jennifer Wetherbee.

Sources: 1. The Texas Art Education Association, CCISD and CCISD press release # 2264, including the list of student winners and stats

2. Interview with Joey Doyle, state VASE director

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