You may have noticed that we've been sharing updates and reminders that appear as green alerts when you log into ORS. To dismiss these messages, click
read more to open them. We hope this is an effective addition to email to deliver important information in real time.
Finalize Regional Awards in ORS
All awards must be finalized by end-of-day
Tuesday, January 22, 2019. Please complete the following Post-Judging Tasks to finalize your awards!
Finalizing Writing Panels
When finalizing writing panels, please adjust the awards distribution thoughtfully for each panel. Watch our short training video onthe Affiliate Resource Site.
Reviewing Judging Notes
This tool is found in Post Judging Tasks and will show you works that were marked by moderators and writing jurors during adjudication. This function will let Affiliates know if a work has been identified as plagiarized, placed in the wrong category, or did not load properly.
Reconcile Scanotron Overrides
It's time to reconcile submission forms. This tool is found in Post Judging Tasks, and will show you all the works that received an award during adjudication but were previously marked as incomplete. This is your opportunity to reach out to the student for their missing payment, signatures, etc. Completing this is especially important to ensure your Affiliate invoice is accurate.
Reviewing for Plagiarism
As a reminder, we ask that you review all Gold Key works for potential plagiarism. Art Affiliates can run reports in ORS using Tin Eye found Judging Tasks under the Scan for Plagiarism tab. Writing Affiliates can use
Quetext.com or other third-party sites to check works for potential plagiarism violations.
If matches are found, please notify Daniel Embree at dembree@scholastic.com to determine if any works are not original and should not receive an award.
Regional Award Notifications
Affiliates must notify students with regional awards by Friday, February 1, 2019. A list of all Gold Key recipients will be posted at artandwriting.org on that date.
You can download a report of your award recipients using the Create Reports tool and generate award letters using Regional Notification Letters. Both are found in ORS.
There are many ways to announce your awards! Here are two recommendations:
Post a list of award recipients on your microsite and email all students and educators to view the list online.
Email or mail notification letters to students and educators. Include ceremony and exhibition information in the letter.
Here are some other tips from Affiliates:
Send a report to school principals informing them of how many submissions came from their school and how many received an award.
Send an email to all participating schools, even if they did not have any students who received an award. This may help keep them connected.
Please note: The 2019 Regional Awards Press Release Template will be available on the Affiliate Resource Site after all of the regional awards are finalized and reviewed.
Ceremony & Exhibition Planning
'Tis the season to plan your regional ceremony and exhibition! Photos of last year's ceremonies and exhibitions from Affiliates across the country are posted in the Affiliate Resource Site.
Here are some tips to create a memorable moment for students and educators:
Invite students to be recognized individually on stage.
Let students introduce themselves to avoid mispronounced names.
Create a moment to celebrate the educators.
Read the Ceremony Guide for more best practices to ensure an unforgettable production!
We wish we could attend every ceremony to celebrate your students and educators with you! Since we can't be there in person, we look forward to hearing about it from you and seeing your pictures.
The 2019 Regional Ceremony Greeting is now available! We recommend downloading the video and playing it directly from the file rather than streaming it over the internet. This will ensure that the video plays smoothly and is not interrupted.
Certificates & Supply Orders
By now you should have received your certificates and supply orders. Please keep track of the supplies you use or don't use and take notes to give yourself an idea of how much to order for next year!
Live Webinar and Training Videos
Our next live webinar will be
Today, January 17, 2018 at 4:30 pm EST. To join from a computer, tablet, or smartphone go to:global.gotomeeting.com/join/787784573.
You may use any audio and microphone connected to your device, or you may dial-in by phone:
Dial-in: 408-650-3123
Access Code: 787-784-573
