Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), Rochester, NY, is accepting entries in its fifth annual Digital Arts, Film, and Animation Competition for deaf or hard-of-hearing middle and high school students.

Students in grades 9 through 12 can use their creative talents and artistic expression in six categories: Web Page Design, Graphic Media, 3-D Animation, Film, Interactive Media, and Photo Imaging.

Last year’s winning entries came from students in California, Minnesota, Arkansas, New York, Kansas, Virginia, and Illinois.

Students submitting winning entries in each category will receive a $250 prize and an all-expenses-paid trip to Rochester for the awards ceremony in the spring, and an exhibition of their work. RIT is home to the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID), where more than 1,300 students with hearing loss from around the world study, live, and socialize with 15,000 hearing students on campus.

Students may submit up to two entries.

Click here for entry forms, contest rules, and other details. The deadline for entries is January 15, 2010.

RIT is internationally recognized as a leader in computing, engineering, imaging technology, and fine and applied arts programs, and for providing unparalleled support services for students with hearing loss, says the institute. US News and World Report has consistently ranked RIT among the nation’s leading comprehensive universities.

[Source: RIT]