The art submission from Natalia Engl, an 11th Grade Student at Ponte Vedra High School (pictured above), and the poetry submission from Nicholas Casillo, an 8th Grader at Fruit Cove Middle School, were selected as the first-place winners in the 2024 contest.
St. Johns County School District Fine Arts Specialist Joanne Crowder, author and publisher Kristen Paul, Crisp Ellert Art Museum Director Julie Dickover and artist Fran Windeler of Vilano Beach judged more than 600 submissions from St. Johns County students in selecting the artwork and poetry for next year’s calendar.
In the Art Contest, Yiwen Chen, a 7th Grader at Valley Ridge Academy, won second place and Bristol Howell, an 8th Grade Student at Fruit Cove Middle School, won second place in the poetry contest.
Those receiving honorable mention include:
Art
Savannah Crowe, Creekside High School, 11th Grade
Noelle Sinno, Creekside High School, 10th Grade
Georgie Obie, Creekside High School, 10th Grade
Ethan Phillips, Valley Ridge Academy, 4th Grade
Adalynn Flores, Otis Mason Elementary School, 3rd Grade
Layann Issa, Landrum Middle School, 8th Grade
Aanya Patel, Freedom Crossing Academy, 8th Grade
Saryn Vasallo, Beachside High School, 11th Grade
Jewel Atzori, Island Prep Elementary School, 1st Grade
Ina Li, Creekside High School, 9th Grade
Ava Mackie, Beachside High School, 9th Grade
Poetry
Jonah Gardeen, Fruit Cove Middle School, 6th Grade
Louisa Ward, Patriot Oaks Academy, 5th Grade
Marcus Mislivec, Fruit Cove Middle School, 6th Grade
Kelsey Miller, Fruit Cove Middle School, 6th Grade
Alene Tanbi, Fruit Cove Middle School, 8th Grade
Mia Yochelson , Fruit Cove Middle School, 8th Grade
Shanmukha Patsamatla, Fruit Cove Middle School, 6th Grade
Riley Hartman, Fruit Cove Middle School, 6th Grade
Tejaswini Saravanan, Fruit Cove Middle School, 6th Grade
Marleigh Romine, Fruit Cove Middle School, 6th Grade
Contest winners will receive special recognition during a St. Johns County School Board Meeting and have their artwork displayed at the Crisp Ellert Art Museum throughout October during Domestic Violence Awareness Month, with 3,000 calendars distributed to classrooms throughout St. Johns County this fall.
“We appreciate all of the St. Johns County Students who entered the contest, our judges and the continued support of the project by the St. Johns County School District, which raises awareness of our prevention work throughout the county,” said Betty Griffin Center CEO Kelly Franklin. “We also appreciate the support of the locally owned print company HARTLEY, which sponsored the production of the calendar for a third consecutive year.”