Alondra Pacheco, AATSP 9-12 Representative

AATSP offers students a wonderful opportunity to showcase their artistic skills. Andrea Nazelli, our National Poster Contest Director, has been hard at work developing meaningful ways that students as young as pre-K can participate in AATSP programs. In Ohio, we have a state poster contest where teachers with a valid AATSP membership can submit entries to the contest. After all entries are  submitted for Ohio’s March deadline, a panel selects up to five entries to move up to the national poster contest. 

The contest’s categories include: 

1. Pre-K to 2^nd graders may submit drawings.
2. 3^rd– 5^th graders may submit drawings.
3. 6^th-8^th graders may submit both drawings and digital entries.
4. 9^th-12^th graders may submit both drawings and digital entries. In addition, students in grades 9-12^th are asked to write an artist statement where they can expand on the techniques they used and what they want their creation to reflect.

The poster contest encourages students to incorporate the upcoming conference theme, “Celebrando nuestras raíces y culturas en el corazón del universo” (Celebrating our roots and cultures in the heart of the universe). Students who are selected as winners will be showcased in the conference program, AATSP website, and other promotional materials.

Winners from grades pre-K to 2^nd will receive a congratulatory letter, a ribbon, and a curated art set. Students in grades 3-5 will receive a congratulatory letter, certificate, and curated art set. For the middle school entries, winners from grades 6-8 will receive a congratulatory letter, a medal, and an Amazon gift card ($100 for 1^st place, $75 for second place, and $50 for third). High school student winners will receive a congratulatory letter, a plaque, and an Amazon gift card ($100 for 1^st place, $75 for second place, and $50 for third). Sponsoring teachers will also receive an Amazon gift card.

In 2026 you may send your entries to: OHPosterContest@outlook.com. The Ohio Poster contest accepts submissions from January to March 20^th. 

The national poster contest runs from January to April (national deadline) and winners are announced in May. We are excited to see if any of our own Ohio entries made it into the final round. 

More information about the contest is available here : https://www.aatsp.org/page/PosterContest