Ho-ho-ho-liday card contest around the corner

The UTRGV Holiday Card Contest is open for students to showcase their artwork and be eligible to win up to $1,000 in scholarships.

To enter the contest, participants must be UTRGV students in good standing. Dual-credit and concurrent students are not eligible. 

Six scholarships will be awarded in the contest.

UTRGV President Guy Bailey and Luis H. Zayas, provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs, will award a $1,000 scholarship to a first-place winner and a $500 scholarship to two runners-up.

Patrick Gonzales, UTRGV vice president for Marketing and Communications, said the contest has become a tradition in the university.

Gonzales said President Bailey likes to send holiday cards to “the campus; to other presidents; to key external stakeholders, like our donors; our alumni [and] elected officials.”

Instead of buying a holiday card, Bailey came up with the idea of making a contest among UTRGV students.

“One of the reasons he did that is because he truly believes that some of the most talented designers come from our student body,” Gonzales said. “So, why go buy a card? Or, why pay somebody to create it when we have so many talented students who can do an even better job.”

The limit is one entry per person. Any other submissions by the same competitor will not be reviewed.

Designs cannot include any words or messages in the artwork, according to the UTRGV website. The rules state that it is artwork only; no words or messages should be included in the final submissions.

Gonzales said UTRGV started selling the winning cards for a good cause.

“The other thing we added a few years ago, is now we sell the winning cards to our campus community, or really, to anybody who wants to buy them through our bookstore,” he said. “And all the proceeds of those sales go to the food pantry. … That’s something we have done the last two years, and it’s been a success. We’ve sold out on all the cards that were put up to sell.”

Karen Dorado, director of Special Programs and Community Relations, told The Rider via email last Tuesday that “a total of $3,300 was raised and donated to the UTRGV Food Pantry through the 2022 Holiday Card Sale.”

Graphic design junior Sandrine Agbeko was awarded first place in the President’s category and a $1,000 scholarship for the 2022 Holiday Card Contest.

Agbeko’s card design is a bundle of holiday desserts, including cookies shaped as cowboy boots, pan dulce and UTRGV logo-shaped cookies.

“So, the inspiration behind it was mostly from a cookie box that would be given during the holidays,” she said. “Since we do live in a predominantly Hispanic community, I wanted to implement some Mexican pastries, such as pan dulce … so that it can be inclusive of the community that we live in the RGV, as well as incorporate school pride into it, because I also had a cookie that has the UTRGV logo on it.”

Agbeko said she spent two weeks designing the card.

“It was pretty tedious,” she said. “The image of my holiday card was more realistic. And usually my style is very flat and, so, I had to incorporate a lot of shading and a lot of details to it.”

Agbeko said she plans to compete in this year’s contest and encourages fellow students to do so as well.

“Be appreciative of the RGV,” she said. “There’s a lot of culture here. And I feel it is very important to highlight the things that are in the Valley, including the community and everything else that makes the school very inclusive and very proud to be part of this community.”

Maritza Flores, a cybersecurity junior, was one of the 2022 provost runners-up in the contest and received a $500 scholarship.

“I got inspired from my grandma, who passed away like a year ago,” Flores said. “I wanted to add so many things … to show reunion. Showing how we could all get together and celebrate this holiday as a family even if family members aren’t there with us. But spiritually, they’re there.”

She said she plans on submitting a design this year, too, and encourages students to do the same.

“Even if you are not, like, an artist or anything, you should at least join,” she said. “Have fun with it. Show your creativity [and] your imagination. Inspiring others with what you can do even if it’s not perfect.”

The card specifications are that the finished size must be 7 x 5 inches with a .25-inch bleed and a safety zone of 6.75 x 4.75 inches, according to the UTRGV website. The card may be in landscape or portrait orientation. 

All artwork must be CMYK at 300 dpi. The accepted formats are PDF, EPS, AI, TIFF and JPEG. The artwork must be submitted electronically, along with the official entry form.

If the artwork does not meet these requirements, the submission will not be considered.

The deadline to submit a design is Oct. 31. Winners will be announced in mid-November via email.

For more information on the contest, call the University Marketing and Communications Office at 665-2741 or email events@utrgv.edu. To submit an entry, visit utrgv.edu/feature/eblasts/president-holiday-card/contest.