The Academy Awards Scholarships to High School Fashion Design Contest Winners

The International Academy of Design & Technology (the Academy) announced today that ten graduating high school seniors have been named the local winners of its national fashion design contest (the contest is in association with Teen Vogue Magazine). These 10 local winners will then make their garments with the help of industry professionals and receive a trip to Chicago to attend the 2009 IMAGINE Fashion Show in May. There, the national winner will see his or her winning design walk down the runway on a professional model as part of the show. The students, along with the school locations they represent, are:

Santana Almanza - San Antonio, TX

Demetrius Denton - Chicago, IL

Mark Jones – Tampa, FL

Elaine Oquendo - Orlando, FL

Anna Romero - Las Vegas, NV

Ashley Stephenson - Detroit, MI

Valerie Stuedemann - Nashville, TN

Naly Thao - Sacramento, CA

Jennifer Torres - Schaumburg, IL

Shelby Wolf - Seattle, WA

High school seniors were invited to participate by completing an application and submitting an original concept to a local Academy campus. The first round of judging was conducted by a panel of Academy faculty and employees at each location. The final round will be conducted by a national panel of Academy faculty and employees, along with a special guest judge from Teen Vogue Magazine. All ten locations had finalists who were chosen and awarded a $5000 scholarship and an entry into the national competition to earn a full-tuition scholarship (valued at more than $50,000). In addition, the national winner will have the added excitement of receiving a trip to New York to attend Teen Vogue’s Fashion University and of seeing his or her design featured in an advertisement in Teen Vogue Magazine.

"The submissions we received spanned a wide range of styles,” said Tom McNamara, senior vice president, Art & Design for Career Education Corporation (parent company of the Academy). "These young men and women demonstrated that they have the talent and desire to pursue a design career and we are excited about providing them with this opportunity to get them started.”

The competition for the national award will include a number of formal dresses but each one has unique influences. "Shallow Water” combines a subdued palette of blues and brown while "Lavender Romance” is a sleek silhouette of lavender with black lace accents. "Modern Asian” is a bold, red garment with embroidered trim. Men are not excluded from the prospects and a modern looking "Casual Male of the Future” will be judged for the prize. Photos are available.

About the Academy

The International Academy of Design & Technology provides educational programs that are designed to prepare students for professional opportunities and career success in select design and technology fields. The Academy has been an established institution for more than 25 years and has 10 campuses across the US. At the Academy, students are part of an energetic community that shares ideas, solves problems, and finds new ways to approach work today and in the future. While enrolled at the Academy, each student is given an opportunity to grow vocationally, intellectually and professionally.

The Academy offers a variety of degree programs in fields such as Fashion Design, Interior Design, Visual Communication, Graphic Design, Digital Media Production, Fashion Merchandising and Game Design & Development. Programs vary by location. The Academy also offers fully-online degrees in certain programs. The International Academy of Design & Technology is accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools. The Academy is a member of the Career Education Corporation (NASDAQ:CECO) network of universities, colleges and schools.