Pennsylvania Dental Association Announces Winners of Annual Statewide Third-Grade Student Poster Contest

HARRISBURG, Pa., April 8, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Third-grader Mateo Cruz of Solomon Plains Elementary School in Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County will receive a $500 prize for winning first place in the Pennsylvania Dental Association's (PDA) 2019 National Children's Dental Health Month (NCDHM) statewide poster contest.

Mateo's prize-winning entry creatively shows a tooth taking a shower with the headline, "Up, Down, In Between – Scrub your Teeth to Keep them Clean!" Mateo will be presented with his framed winning poster and $500 prize at a school assembly. Both Solomon Plains Elementary School and Mateo's teacher, Ms. Tracey Dlugosh, will also receive prizes of $250 each for being part of first place in PDA's contest.

Our second place winner is Sophie Hunt from St. Margaret Mary Elementary School in Dauphin County. Sophie created a space-themed piece "Welcome to the Molar System," and shows that when you take the proper steps, "Your Teeth are out of this World." Sophie received a $250 prize and a certificate of recognition.

"Keep Brushing!" says Jailene Martinez, a third grader from Heights Elementary in Wilkes-Barre, who received third place recognition. In Jailene's artwork, she drew a dental office, with three teeth as the patients. One is sadly covered in cavities. Jailene received a $100 prize and a certificate of recognition.

The following students were among the statewide Top 10 entries and will receive an Honorable Mention certificate:

• Elijah Vega – Age 8, Dan Flood Elementary, Wilkes-Barre
• Juleah Byler – Age 9, Martinsburg Elementary, Martinsburg
• William Brown – Age 9, Dillsburg Elementary, Dillsburg
• Ishan Powell – Age 9, Dan Flood Elementary, Wilkes-Barre
• Amelia Foor – Age 9, Tussey Mountain Elementary, Saxton
• Ella Bowers – Age 9, Swiftwater Elementary, Swiftwater
• Milton Gonzalez – Age 9, Dan Flood Elementary, Wilkes-Barre

The winning posters were selected from more than 125 clever, well-designed entries submitted to the PDA Central Office for judging. The contest was open to third-grade students in any Pennsylvania public, private or charter school. More than 1,800 schools were contacted for participation.

Visit PDA's website at www.padental.org to learn more about NCDHM and other dental health topics.

About the Pennsylvania Dental Association
Founded in 1868, the Pennsylvania Dental Association (PDA) is comprised of approximately 5,500 member dentists. It is a constituency of the American Dental Association (ADA), the largest and oldest national dental society in the world. PDA's mission is to improve the public health, promote the art and science of dentistry and represent the interests of its member dentists and their patients. PDA is the voice of dentistry in Pennsylvania. For more information on PDA, visit our website at www.padental.org.

SOURCE Pennsylvania Dental Association

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http://www.padental.org