Texas Border Business
Pharr, Texas – Two Pharr-San Juan-Alamo ISD high school students have been selected as the 2018 PSJA School Meals Photo Competition winners. PSJA T. Jefferson T-STEM Early College High School (ECHS) Junior Amy Escalante and PSJA ECHS Freshman Kaylee Lopez won the photo campaign competition for creatively encouraging students to eat the free and nutritious meals provided at school.
The district competition gave high school students the opportunity to submit photos of their peers eating their lunch in the cafeteria with one central campaign to emphasize the importance of students eating at school. The winning submissions would be displayed as 36×24-inch posters at their high school, feeder middle school and elementary school cafeterias to encourage all students to eat their breakfast, lunch, and after-school snacks.
The students were surprised in their classrooms on Friday, Oct. 12 by the University of Kentucky’s Assistant Professor Dr. Daniel Kahl and Regional Director for Baylor University’s Texas Hunger Initiative Dr. Elaine Hernandez–both of whom sponsored the competition. Joining the sponsors for the surprise, were PSJA Child Nutrition Department Director Imelda Palacios, PSJA Child Nutrition Area Supervisor Corina Gonzalez, PSJA Child Nutrition Field Supervisor Maria Santillana and PSJA Communications Director Arianna Vazquez-Hernandez.
Escalante’s campaign was “Fuel Your Stomach to Fuel Your Brain.” Lopez, who worked on the submission with her 8th period Graphic Design and Illustration class, named the campaign “Eat Well, Live Well.”
In addition to their photos being displayed as 36×24-inch posters throughout district cafeterias, each winner received a Whataburger Yeti tumbler and t-shirt, Raising Cane’s gift card, special PSJA Family laptop backpack, and several nutrition goodies from Dr. Kahl and Dr. Hernandez.
PSJA ISD thanks Baylor University’s Texas Hunger Initiative (THI), the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service, the University of Kentucky’s Rural Child Poverty Nutrition Center (RCPNC), and the Texas Department of Agriculture for making this district competition possible. Congratulations!
