CHAIR: J. MCDONALD (mcdojenn@alcdsb.on.ca)

Maximum Participants: 20

9:00am - 9:30am          Competitor Registration & Welcome

9:30am - 12:30pm          Competition

12:30pm - 1:00pm          Lunch

1:00pm - 3:30pm          Competition

3:30pm - 4:00pm          Clean up

4:00pm - 5:00pm          Pizza & Results Submitted

5:30pm - 6:30pm          Awards

6:30pm - 7:30pm          Open House & Collect Projects/Tools

DURATION: 

The student shall be prepared to present their final concepts and respond to questions from the judges. The presentation and question period will be approximately 10-15 minutes in length. A schedule will be determined at the start of the event at St. Lawrence College. 

*Competitors must be on time for their contest or may be disqualified at the discretion of the Technical Committee.

PURPOSE OF THE CONTEST:

To design and produce material showcasing the 2024 Limestone Skills Competition as an exciting event where competitors will put their skills on display during the competitions. Your theme should reflect the diversity and excitement of the competition day to students aged 14 - 21.

Please Note: All work is to be completed prior to this event on February 29, 2024

SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE TO BE TESTED:

Design, graphics and layout skills used to create promotional material. Participants will create a theme and visual concept that will be applied to the promotional pieces.

1) A Poster

2) Media Campaign - 3 Media Assets

3) Insightful Powerpoint Presentation

REQUIRED ELEMENTS:

Poster:

● 2024 Limestone Skills Competition

● “Success has no limits”

● February 29, 2024

● Limestone Skills Logo

● Additional copy, text, and images can be included to support your concept/theme

● Design must communicate how the Limestone Skills Competition is an excellent experience for young people who want to get into the trades

● Poster must be printed in full colour 10” x 16” and mounted/presented on an 11”x17” black or white piece of foam core in a standard vertical (portrait) format, leaving a 1/2 inch border around the edges. NOTE: Foam core boards must be provided by the participant.

● NO competitor name, school or labels should appear on the front of the display board. Competitor’s name and school MUST be on the back of the board.

● All dimensions will be measured and scored accordingly.

2. Media Assets:

Choose 3 Media Assets only from the list below to design:

• Facebook Ad

• Instagram Ad

• Out of Home: Bus Shelter

• Out of Home: Transit Ad

• Out of Home: Street Billboard

• Digital Ad Unit: Digital Billboard 970 x 250 pixels

• Digital Ad Unit: Monster MPU: 300 x 600 pixels

FOR ALL MEDIA ASSETS:

• Ads should include a graphic that would attract and encourage students to enter the Skilled Trades.

• Ads should be compiled as a series to complement one another and drive awareness around the competition.

• Place all ads in a real world environment / mock up - ie: billboards as seen on a street, ad units as seen on a site (select a website, do not design a website)

• All ads should have the Limestone Skills logo and the Tagline: “Success has no limits” and refer to the date: February 29, 2024.

• All designs, including the poster, must reflect a consistent theme and demonstrate a sense of continuity across all three pieces, but should not be exactly the same.

• Media Assets should be presented in full colour

• These designs (not including the poster) will be seen in the PowerPoint presentation only. No print out of the media design elements are required.

• If you want to enhance your concept, you may include an influencer to help promote the competition to the target audience. (google images are allowed)

WRITTEN/ VISUAL COMPONENT:

Presentation:

• Each competitor will be required to prepare a visual presentation in PowerPoint presented in PDF format.

• The title slide must include the competitor’s name and the school name.

• Explain your design decisions from concept to execution. (ie: why certain colours, layouts, research of concepts and in progress design sketches. We want to see your thinking and your process work)

• Written explanation of your selection of media choices: why did you select what you did and how does it best reach your target audience (Example: Princess & Gardiners Rd. because it’s near the mall where a lot of students would see it or on Route __ bus because it is the bus most students take to the mall).

• All graphic design and .pdf layout presented must be the individual competitor’s own original and creative work.

• All designs for the poster, and media campaign must reflect a consistent theme and demonstrate a sense of continuity across all three pieces.

PRESENTATION COMPONENT:

• Present your Visual PowerPoint presentation

• Oral presentation must outline to the judges your design thought process for the theme and finished design concepts.

• Overview of the Media choices and rationale

Verification:

The competitor shall have 5 minutes to set up and take down their work. Each competitor must be prepared to participate in a question and answer session after they present their concepts. 

The PowerPoint presentation portion of the competition requires the student to describe their theme / design concept and design thought process (10 min). 

The question answer portion conducted by the judges will give them the opportunity to better understand and clarify a competitor’s design direction and thought process. (5 min)

Limestone Skills reserves the right to reproduce any of the promotional packages in whole or in part without the permission of the student but will acknowledge the creator on the reproduction.

Students selected for the interview may not participate in another contest at the local Technological Skills Competition.

A letter signed by an administrator certifying that the promotional package was designed and produced by the student will be produced during the interview. The letter must identify the school, school board, city and the student that will be interviewed.

The Limestone Skills Competition Logo – Logo will be provided as a PNG.

Please Note:

• All work is to be completed prior to attending the Limestone Skills Competition. The graphic design and PowerPoint layout presented must be the individual competitors' own original and creative work.

• An ai (Illustrator) or psd (Photoshop) mockup/template for the billboard or transit shelter ad may be used.

• The use of some Stock photography and illustration is acceptable however the use of student original work is encouraged

• Design and illustrations may be generated by hand (sketches only) and/or by using electronic equipment and appropriate software for the final finished products.

• Bring a USB with your PowerPoint presentation, just in case there are technical challenges. (and it’s a good habit to always be prepared)

EQUIPMENT AND MATERIALS

Supplied by Limestone Skills:

● Screen, projector, easels for physical posters, and computers for presentation

Supplied by Competitor:

● Poster project mounted on foam core as outlined in the scope

● A USB loaded with the PowerPoint presentation as outlined in the scope.

SAFETY

Safety is a priority at the Limestone Skills Competition. At the discretion of the judges and technical chairs, any competitor can be removed from the competition site for not having the proper safety equipment and/or not acting in a safe manner.

RULES, REGULATIONS AND ELIGIBILITY

Eligibility Criteria:

Secondary students must:

● Be 21 years of age or younger as of December 31st in the competition year (2024).

● Compete in only one contest at the competition.

● Possess a Canadian citizenship or landed immigrant status and be a resident of Ontario.

Other Rules and Regulations all competitors need to be aware of prior to attending the OTSC:

● Translators or other assistants (e.g. hearing impaired) are permitted in the contest site only if this request was made during the registration process and approved in advance by the Limestone Skills Competition Chairs.

● During the contest, no one will have access to the contest site except the Technical Committee Members, Judges, Skills Ontario staff and Competitors. Spectators, including teacher/advisors, will be provided a viewing area if possible.

● Immediate disqualification may occur at the discretion of the technical chair if a competitor displays any one of the following:

● Acts inappropriately

● Shows disregard for the safety of themselves or those around them

● Breaks the established rules and regulations including:

● Uses equipment or material that is not permitted

● Dishonest conduct (cheating, plagiarism)

● Speaks with those outside the contest area

● Arrives to the contest site late Sign-in for all contests will happen on the contest site the morning of the competition.

JUDGING CRITERIA

Presentation Skills: /40

Includes personal and material presentation; 

Overall presentation (prepared, polished, knows materials, can answer confidently); 

Research: Data supported decisions, well thought-out research, intelligent well supported media choices; 

Balanced presentation of Insights & Graphic Design elements; 

Creative process: Show us your visual design process (show us how your idea came to life); 

Originality: Is this new? (Explain or show how this idea is original)

Graphic Design Professionalism: /40

Professional caliber of Graphic Design in physical poster and media design (execution quality), consistency of design across all components including colour palette

Soft Skills and Readiness: /10

On time arrival, proper attire (business or creative casual), USB Backup, mounted poster specs followed

Questions: /10

Each competitor will be asked up to 5 questions regarding their design concepts

Mark out of 100

As the rules state, there are no ties. If the score is even after the contest, the design component will be used as the tie breaker.

CLOTHING REQUIREMENTS

Students are expected to be dressed appropriately for a professional presentation/interview.

PROJECTS

After the completion of the Limestone Skills Competition, students are permitted to take their work with them. However, the winning competitor may be asked to make changes to the work to prepare for the next competition. All students and their work will be subject to photographs during and after the competition.

If you have any other questions or concerns please contact: mcdojenn@alcdbs.on.ca