Twenty students awarded for clean air PSAs
Twenty of over 1,150 high school students were recognized and rewarded for their environmental public service announcements on Saturday, Feb. 8.
The 10th annual Utah High School Clean Air Marketing contest strives to promote environmentally friendly habits to teenagers across Utah. UCAM travels to Utah high schools to help up-and-coming drivers understand the impact their choices can have on the environment. Sixty-one finalists received $50 gift cards and 20 state winners received awards and cash prizes anywhere from $100-300.
“I am in awe of these students every year, and for me, the entries become more compelling and more interesting and more elaborate every year. That’s part of the excitement of this as I go into these classrooms and give my presentations, and then to see the outcomes is just very gratifying,” said marketing professor in the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business Edwin Stafford.
The project began when its founders Edwin Stafford and Roslynn McCann discovered Utah students were not being educated on air pollution. In 2015, the contest started at Logan High School with only 75 entries. Over the last ten years, the outreach has increased significantly.
“As you know, Utah — we have some of the worst air quality in the country at times, and so what’s interesting is our research has found the State of Utah does not have air pollution as part of its curriculum for youth in the education system, so the kids and teens in our school system do not learn about local air pollution,” Stafford said.
As teenagers begin driving, UCAM finds it important for students to understand the responsibility that comes with the privilege of driving.
“Given that the teens competing in our contest are just learning how to drive, we are hoping their creation of PSAs for clean air will influence their driving behavior (not idling, carpooling, and engaging in alternative modes of transportation),” McCann wrote in an email to The Utah Statesman.
Miriam Dixon, UCAM’s extension intern, explained the program partners with local businesses throughout the Utah that contribute money to their top artists who are then invited to Logan for the awards ceremony. Dixon also noted how important this competition is for the state.
“I have loved to see the amount of effort that the students put into the competition. It is something that I think people would not assume high schoolers need to know or care about, but they are just getting cards, and they are learning about the importance of environmental sustainability,” Dixon said.
The contest aims to promote an outlet where kids can use creativity to make a difference. As one student Zoe Appel stated, “It meant something to me.”
“What’s important about this is that they have to come up with an advertisement to encourage other people to keep the air clean, so I think just the idea of the creativity that’s needed to communicate the idea of not idling or communicate the need to carpool or communicate the need to take the bus, and that’s why it’s so fascinating to see some of the creativity that these kids come up with,” Stafford said.
The winning PSAs will be displayed throughout the state and on social media.