OUTSTANDING YOUNG ARTISTS RECOGNIZED IN MTD ART CONTEST; RECORD NUMBER OF ENTRIES RECEIVED

SANTA BARBARA – This spring, Santa Barbara MTD held the 12^th Annual Youth Art Poster Contest for Grades 1 through 6, with a theme of “Ocean Buses.” MTD received over 180 entries, setting an all-time record. Winning works of art will be featured inside MTD buses for the next year, beginning in early July. For the second year in a row, MTD teamed up with MOXI, The Wolf Museum of Exploration & Innovation, where the winning works of art will be included in a special summertime art exhibit at MOXI along with 18 additional selected entries. GraphicInk generously sponsored the printing for the exhibit at MOXI. The MOXI exhibit is set to open at the end of June.

Participating sites included several South Coast afterschool programs, schools, and libraries. Entries came from the Goleta, Eastside, Central, Montecito, & Carpinteria Libraries, City of Santa Barbara RAP Program, the Carpinteria & Greater Santa Barbara Girls, Inc., the Downtown Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Westside, & Goleta Boys & Girls Clubs, Santa Barbara Community Academy, and MOXI.

1^st-3^rd Grade Winners

1st Place: Minori Roca, 2nd Grade, El Camino Elementary

2nd Place: Amelie C. Romero, 2nd Grade, Monte Vista Elementary

3rd Place: Devin Schooler & Eddie Cortina, 1st Grade, El Camino Elementary

Honorable Mention: Amelia Silva, 2nd Grade, St. Raphael School

4^th-6^th Grade Winners

1st Place: Noemi Espinoza Aguilar, 4th Grade, Santa Barbara Community Academy

2nd Place: Anahí Perez, 4th Grade, Santa Barbara Community Academy

3rd Place: Katie Luna Mendoza, 6th Grade, Santa Barbara Community Academy

Honorable Mention: Sofia Ventura, 6th Grade, Santa Barbara Community Academy

Photos of some of the winners are attached. Other winner photos and high-resolution images of their artwork are available upon request.