SALT LAKE CITY — A school district here is holding a unique contest to showcase students’ artistic skills: Officials are calling upon young designers to create school bus advertisements.

The ads for Granite School District buses must highlight one of the following: a specific program at the Granite Technical Institute (e.g., animation, aviation, biomanufacturing, health sciences, information systems, etc.), a district career and technical education program, online courses, or they can be “help wanted” ads for bus drivers.

A regular ad for the side of a bus is required to be 18 inches by 60 inches, and a “help wanted” ad would be 24 inches by 24 inches. Participants will receive $250 if their design is used on the district’s school buses.  

Granite School District Publications Specialist Steven Powell told SBF that this is the first time the district has developed such a contest.

“After looking into the possibility of placing company advertisements on our buses, we determined that the move would not generate enough revenue to make a significant impact,” Powell said. “However, we felt that ads on buses would be a great opportunity to showcase some of the great programs available to students right here in the district. And what better way than to have the students that participate in these programs design the ads?”

The communications department and the career and technical education department will work together in judging the entries. Powell said there is no set deadline for the contest, but officials plan to place the ads on the buses this summer.

When considering student artwork, officials plan to look for basic design principles that they feel will work best on the side of a bus.

Powell said the ads will stay on the buses for at least a year, and about a dozen buses will be used for the program.

“Many of our students are well versed in graphic arts, and we anticipate selecting multiple designs,” he added. “We’re excited to extend this opportunity to our students to assist in transforming a staple of public education into a resource for promoting exceptional education programs.”