For information contact: Elenor Hodges 703-228-6427

LOCAL STUDENTS WIN ENVIRONMENTAL PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST

Arlington, VA, September 22, 2004 – Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment (ACE) is pleased to announce the winners of its third environmental photography contest for Northern Virginia students. Wakefield High School senior Daniel Ryan won the Scenic Landscape category with his print entitled, “Corrosion.” Joseph Firman, a junior at Wakefield High School, won the interpretive category with his print entitled, “No Parking.” Runners-up included Christina Jeffers, a junior at Yorktown High School in the interpretive category and Gabriela Arellano, a 2004 graduate of Yorktown High, in the scenic category.

Photos recognized with honorable mentions include: Garth Baughman (Washington-Lee High School), Alex Bruemmer (Yorktown High School), Lauren Cary (George Mason High School), Elizabeth Cobble (Yorktown High School), Francesca Ficara (Yorktown High School), Jon Glomb (Yorktown High School), Sophia Guerci (Yorktown High School), Taylor Hancock (Yorktown High School), Nina Jinks (Yorktown High School), Jennie Kaplan (George Mason High School), Brendan McLean (Yorktown High School), and John David Nelson (Wakefield High School).

Winners in each category will be awarded a $200 gift certificate to Penn Camera at a reception to take place on October 14, 2004, at 7:30 p.m. at the Langston-Brown Community Center in Arlington. Runners-up will receive $50 gift certificates. The public is welcomed to attend. Following the reception, the winning works will form a traveling exhibit that will be on display at various Arlington locations during the fall and winter.

“Our goal with this project was to get students involved and thinking about environmental aspects of our community. The results demonstrated this kind of thought, combined with artistic skill and creativity,” said Charles Bianchi, chairman of ACE’s Board of Directors.

The theme of this year’s project was "Our Environment: Photographic Perspectives by Northern Virginia’s Students." Seventy students ranging in age from 9 to 18 and representing eight local schools submitted 108 prints for judging. The scenic landscape category attracted entries that featured Northern Virginia’s environment. For the interpretive category, students considered human impact on the environment with a photograph and 100-word statement describing their feelings or impressions of the scene captured by their photos.

Well-known Washington, DC landscape photographer and Arlington resident Jake McGuire judged the contest. The 2004 project was made possible with a volunteer service grant by the management consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton.

For more information about this project or the planned 2005 competition, please contact Elenor Hodges, Executive Director of ACE, at 703-228-6427 or office@arlingtonenvironment.org. Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment is a nonprofit educational and service organization. More information can be found at the ACE website at www.arlingtonenvironment.org.