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April 13, 2007
NAPERVILLE — Nicor has announced the winners of Energy by Design: A Visual Arts Contest for Students. Nicor, in partnership with the National Energy Foundation (NEF), developed this innovative contest and is proud to celebrate its second successful year. The contest was designed to bring students, teachers, and families together to become more aware of how to use energy efficiently and the effects of conservation on the environment.
This year Nicor received 1,043 entries from students in 24 communities; a 500% increase compared to last year. "Our second year of doing this contest has surpassed our expectations. Receiving over 1,000 worthy entries is tremendously exciting. The challenge of judging was even that much harder due to the quality of all the entries. We are glad to see this initiative is growing and we hope to have more participation next year," said Margi Schiemann, Director of Community Relations for Nicor Gas.
Nicor has been providing energy-related teaching materials to schools for the past 13 years. Energy by Design was developed by Nicor and the National Energy Foundation to enhance Nicor's existing free natural gas instructional materials program in a new and exciting way. This contest also aligns with Nicor's other educational initiatives including Dollars for Scholars, ScholarShop, grants, and Matching Gifts for higher education. "While providing information about energy conservation, Energy By Design engages young students' creativity in a fun and thought-provoking manner. This contest is a wonderful link between our dedication to raising energy conservation awareness and our commitment to education," said Schiemann.
To enter the contest, young students were challenged to create a poster that would teach others how to be energy efficient. Contest materials encouraged students to think about how they use energy and what they can do to promote energy efficiency. Students also wrote a reflection about the most important lesson they learned while creating their poster on energy efficiency.
Entries were divided into three age-appropriate categories: grades K-2, 3-5, and 6-8. In each grade category there are four winners – Grand Prize, First Place Finalist, Second Place Finalist, and Third Place Finalist. There is also an award category for teachers whose students participated in the contest. Prizes will be distributed at the winners' schools on various dates in April (see below). Parents and school administrators will attend many of these events. All contest participants will receive a certificate of recognition.
All the winning entries are posted on the contest Web site at EnergybyDesign.org. The prizes will be awarded to students and teachers at individual award ceremonies (see schedule below).
Grand prize winners in each category won a:
- Home Energy Makeover conducted by Nicor Services, an affiliate of Nicor Inc. (up to a $3,000 value)
- $500 U.S. savings bond
- Pizza party for their classroom
- Prize pack filled with fun, age-appropriate prizes
- 2 congratulatory plaques (one for the student to take home and the other to be displayed at the winners' schools)
The top three finalists in each category won a:
- $250 U.S. savings bond
- Prize pack filled with fun, age-appropriate prizes.
- 2 congratulatory plaques (one for the student to take home and the other to be displayed at the winners' schools)
Three teachers have won $1,000 classroom grants. The winners were determined based on the quantity and quality of their students' entries.
The winners are as follows:
| Prize |
First Name |
School |
Town |
Award Ceremony |
| Grade K-2 |
| Grand Prize |
Patrick |
Holy Trinity Elementary |
Bloomington |
April 26, 2007 |
| 1st Place |
Natalie |
Holy Trinity Elementary |
Bloomington |
April 26, 2007 |
| 2nd Place |
Jordan |
Holy Trinity Elementary |
Bloomington |
April 26, 2007 |
| 3rd Place |
Matthew |
Holy Trinity Elementary |
Bloomington |
April 26, 2007 |
| Grade 3-5 |
| Grand Prize |
Isabel |
Longwood Elementary |
Naperville |
April 30, 2007 |
| 1st Place |
Megan |
Maplewood Elementary |
Cary |
April 26, 2007 |
| 2nd Place |
Sarah |
Martin Luther King School |
Rockford |
April 20, 2007 |
| 3rd Place |
Katelyn |
Holy Trinity Elementary |
Bloomington |
April 26, 2007 |
| Grade 6-8 |
| Grand Prize |
Kelsey |
Franklin Middle School |
Wheaton |
April 25, 2007 |
| 1st Place |
Monique |
Forest Trail Middle School |
Park Forest |
April 19, 2007 |
| 2nd Place |
Alex |
Rochelle Middle School |
Rochelle |
April 24, 2007 |
| 3rd Place |
Allison |
Prairie View Middle School |
Tinley Park |
April 19, 2007 |
| Teachers |
| Classroom Grant |
Ms. Kessinger |
Holy Trinity Elementary |
Bloomington |
April 26, 2007 |
| Classroom Grant |
Ms. Nealey |
Ridgeview Elementary |
Colfax |
April 17, 2007 |
| Classroom Grant |
Ms. Pekol |
Minooka Junior High |
Minooka |
April 27, 2007 |
Nicor Inc. (NYSE: GAS) is a holding company and is a member of the Standard and Poor's 500 Index. Its principal businesses are Nicor Gas, one of the nation's largest natural gas distribution companies, and Tropical Shipping, a containerized shipping business serving the Caribbean region and the Bahamas. Nicor also owns and has an equity interest in several energy-related businesses. For more information, visit the Nicor Web site at www.nicor.com.
Nicor Gas is one of the largest gas distribution companies in the nation, and has provided safe, reliable and cost-effective natural gas service for nearly 50 years. Nicor serves more than two million customers in a service territory that encompasses most of Northern Illinois, excluding the City of Chicago. For more information on Nicor Gas, visit www.nicorgas.com. |
