Introduction
The National Competition has wrapped up for 2022! Every year, we invite SLED teams from around the nation to compete for thousands of dollars in prize money.
To enter, each SLED chapter must submit a video showcasing their accomplishments. Our expert judges watch the video and review the chapter’s projects submitted throughout the year.
National Competition Winners
1st place: Norris Middle School, winning $2,500 in prize money
Norris Middle School's SLED program has completed more than 30 projects this year. From morning, holiday, and lunch game tournaments to an NMS flag design contest, kindness week, spirit week, and TA projects, community engagement projects like blankets for veterans, a cancer research fundraiser, the positivity project, and summer training programs, they've accomplished a lot!
Norris Middle School is an impressive example of student leadership. Students in SLED are cultivating a positive school culture centered on connectivity, engagement, and fun — just check out their video to learn about all the games and contests they ran this year! Special thanks to Norris Middle School Advisor Rebecca for supporting her students all these years.
2nd place: Patterson High School, winning $1,500 in prize money
Patterson High School's SLED program has several project management groups, including a Spirit Group, Sports/Athletics Group, Mental Health Group, and a Beautification Group. Together they've united students by creating new policies at their school, most notably changing the school dress code! They've run donation drives for prom dresses, created a new school mascot called Jeffrey the Scholar, run Spirit Week, and created awareness campaigns for cancer, mental health, and other issues relevant to the student body.
Patterson High School shows off the best parts of SLED. Their close-knit culture, thoughtful projects that reached the entire student body, and creativity to think outside the box and bring new improvements to their school make Patterson's SLED chapter an exemplary one. Watch their video to see how they've taken their SLED chapter to the next level! Special thanks to SLED Advisor Megan who is elevating SLED each and every year at Patterson.
3rd place: Roosevelt and Jefferson Elementary School, winning $750 apiece
For the first time in SLED history, we had a tie for third place in the National Competition! These two elementary schools just started SLED in January of 2022, and still managed to make campus-wide impact and set up sustainable SLED programs. The third place prize money (and newcomer prize!) for this year will be shared between both elementary schools, and each will receive $750.
Theodore Roosevelt's SLED students made a big splash at their school this year by approaching the principal about a special "Free Seating Friday". They also met with the district's food service providers to get new items on the school lunch menu, including new pastas and pizzas.
Projects weren't the only thing these hard-working SLED students completed this year; they also learned about the Design Thinking process and applied it to each of their projects. Their organizational skills were especially impressive! A big round of applause for Advisor Roman at Roosevelt Elementary for helping the students get things up and running!
Jefferson Elementary School's SLED students did a fantastic job kickstarting their SLED program. They held meetings with their principal, and discovered that minimum days at the school were lacking in activities to do. Together, the SLED team created a digital arts club for students to learn coding, Scratch, and animation. The club's success inspired them to create an arts and sports club after school as well, which the SLED students oversaw.
The tenacity and passion that Jefferson Elementary students had for community engagement is a powerful example of what's possible in SLED. Through their clubs and social outreach, they are creating a positive impact on their school. Watch the video to see the posters and other media these students created to support their school. Thank you Advisor Dominique for your hard work to support Thomas Jefferson's SLED team!
Champion SLED Chapters
We showcase videos from champion chapters on the SLED website. The National Competition takes place every year, and there are always many wonderful submissions. View all past champion videos here.