Get ready to explore a wild world of imagination and creativity! For this year’s ESS Art Contest, we challenged K–12 students to create original artwork representing the theme: “Imagine going to school in a zoo, what would your day be like?” Seven ESS judges scored each submission based on artistic and technical skill, originality, adherence to theme and requirements, unique approach, and title creativity. Five finalists were selected for each grade group based on the highest average scores from the judges. A percentage of the total score from the number of likes, comments, and shares from ESS’ social media (Facebook and Instagram) combined with the highest score from the ESS judges determined the winner from each grade group. Each winning student across four grade groups (K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12) receives a $500 gift card, a custom ESS Moleskine sketchpad, plus $500 for their school. Without further ado, we’re pleased to announce the winners of the 2025 ESS Art Contest:
9-12 Grade Level Winner: Ella Craig
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- Ella Craig (14), Chattanooga High School Center for Creative Arts, TN: “Classroom Chaos”
6-8 Grade Level Winner: Catalina Bors
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- Catalina Bors (13), Piedmont Middle School, NC: “The Science Enclosure”
3-5 Grade Level Winner: Tong Fei Chou
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- Tong Fei Chou (9), Fort Lee School No. 2, NJ: “The BEST School Day”
K-2 Grade Level Winner: Skye Belgutei
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- Skye Belgutei (7), Challenge School, CO: “Jungle Book”
Congratulations to all winners of the 2025 ESS Art Contest!