More than 100 high school and middle school students in the Rockwood community submitted entries for the inaugural “As Seen by Teens” substance abuse prevention public service announcement and poster contest sponsored by the Rockwood Drug-Free Coalition, which is based in Eureka.

See article: Teen Contest About Substance Abuse Offers Money Prizes

The contest judging and awards ceremony was held Feb. 23 at B&B Theatres in Wildwood. Attendees viewed the posters and PSAs on a big screen, witnessed the independent judges complete their scoring rubrics, enjoyed entertainment provided by emcee Joe Fingerhut, and cast their own votes for an “audience choice” winner, according to a news release from coalition representatives.

Click here to see all the winning entries.

Judges for the contest were: Pamela Senti, former art department chair at Lafayette High School; Mary James-Herold, owner of MJH Advertising Agency; Bill Hency, Sales Director of DDI Media; Heather Haymart, owner of Chesterfield Wood Icing; and Alex Jones, Fulfillment Coordinator at Six Flags Over St. Louis in Eureka.

Student poster winners were:

HIGH SCHOOL—             

• 1^st place:  Jake Lee, Lafayette senior
• 2^nd place:  Abigayle Gellasch, Lafayette senior
• 3^rd place:  Jake Park, Eureka junior

MIDDLE SCHOOL—      

• 1^st place:  Cole Staehling, Rockwood Valley 6^th grader
• 2^nd place:  Allison Hallums and Annalise Alvarex, Rockwood Valley 8^th graders
• 3^rd place:  Paige Price and Maggie Dunne, Holy Infant 7^th graders

Students PSA winners were:

HIGH SCHOOL—

• 1^st place:  Thomas Heney, Lafayette senior
• 2^nd place:  Grace Prosperi and T.J. Hugh, Marquette sophomore and junior
• 3^rd place:  Lauren Berger and Carolyn Glaser, Marquette seniors

MIDDLE SCHOOL—

• 1^st place:  Elizabeth Butler, LaSalle Springs 8^th grader
• 2^nd place:  Marnita Brown, LaSalle Springs 7^th grader
• 3^rd place:  Tristan Pacino, LaSalle Springs 7^th grader

People’s Choice Award:  (PSA) Josh Gardiner and Sean Koehler, Marquette junior and sophomore

By engaging youth in prevention messaging, the Rockwood Drug-Free Coalition hopes to increase community awareness of substance abuse, said Coalition Director Renee Heney. All high school and middle school youth living or attending school within Rockwood School District boundaries were invited to participate.

Winning PSAs and posters will receive widespread community exposure at Six Flags, Charter Cable, MTV, MTV2, a DDI Media billboard in Fenton, Riverchase and other community centers, and Rockwood schools.