And the Winner of the SmartArt Student Competition is…..

Congratulations to a Grand Rapids Public Schools junior. Her painting depicting a “different view” of renewable energy has earned a $1,000 college scholarship and prominent display of her winning creation in downtown Grand Rapids as ArtPrize Nine heads into its final week.

Katelyn Sheneman’s piece, “What Makes the World Go ‘Round,” was chosen by three professional judges as the top winner of the fifth annual SmartArt competition among Grand Rapids Public Schools’ high school students, sponsored by Consumers Energy.

Sheneman, who attends City High/Middle School, was first among the Top 10 finalists in the SmartArt (Students Making Art with a Renewable Theme) competition, sponsored by Consumers Energy. The company has been an ArtPrize sponsor since 2011. Here is the full piece.

For the second year, Consumers Energy’s Facebook page hosted a “People’s Choice” contest based on the number of likes, shares and comments. The People’s Choice winner is “Drowning for our Greed” by Jaidyn Pursell, a senior at Union High School, with 397 votes out of a total of 1,808 votes cast. She will receive a $200 Visa gift card and her art teacher Rebecca Smith will receive a $200 gift card toward classroom supplies.

Neal said interest among students and teachers has increased with the SmartArt competition now in its fifth year, and assists in the district’s transformation efforts. “We are grateful to Consumers Energy for their support of our students to help them become tomorrow’s leaders. GRPS made a commitment to going green in our Transformation Plan, and this is a tremendous opportunity for our students to be educated about those efforts and participate through their art.”