GRAPHIC: The winner of the #UHCLMemeAttack contest will win a $500 prize. Graphic by The Signal Editor-in-Chief Miles Shellshear. — The winner of the #UHCLMemeAttack contest will win a $500 prize. Graphic by The Signal Editor-in-Chief Miles Shellshear.

‘UHCL Meme Attack’ contest winner selected Nov. 16

By Cesar Cardenas, Executive Editor Last updated Nov 17, 2021 438 0

UPDATE 11/17/2021: The winner of the 2021 UHCL Meme Attack contest was announced Nov. 16. The selected winner is Mariana Canino Sotelo. The winning meme is pictured below.

GRAPHIC: Mariana Canino Sotelo's winning meme. Graphic courtesy of UHCL Advancement. — Mariana Canino Sotelo’s winning meme. Graphic courtesy of UHCL Advancement.

A $500 prize is going to one lucky student with the best meme about UHCL. UHCL’s Office of Annual Giving is hosting the Meme Attack contest, where students were encouraged to submit their memes on social media using #UHCLMemeAttack for a shot at the prize money. While submissions for the contest are currently closed, the panel of judges will select a winner by Nov. 15.

The $500 grand prize was donated to the school by an anonymous alum. The alum was inspired by an assignment they had done at the university and saw it as an incentive to encourage students to engage with their more creative sides while celebrating and highlighting the UHCL lifestyle.

“[They] wanted to create a way to really engage the students and kind of give back to the students,” said Senior Coordinator of Alumni Engagement and Annual Giving Reginald Jones.

The judges consist of Associate Professor of Communication and Digital Media Studies Leo Chan, Assistant Director of Student Involvement and Leadership Dillon Nash, and two web communicators who are not yet selected. The judges were chosen by Jones.

Judges were told to select a winner that they feel best shows aspects of originality, a high level of insight and importance to the university as a whole.

“I decided to judge this contest because I thought it was something really unique, fun and a great creative experience for students to show their school spirit,” Nash said.

Jones has hopes for the contest to encourage even more students and donors to participate in the future.

“The success of this contestant is showing to be extremely encouraging for those involved,” Jones said. “I really want this to continue, and I’m sure with the success of this we are going to have more donors that are going to want to participate, so hopefully, it gets even bigger and bigger.”

Although submissions are currently closed, the panel of judges will decide which of the students will take home the $500 grand prize. The winner will be announced on or before Nov. 15. There will be another competition held in the spring semester with another $500 prize, allowing those who were unable to compete this semester to begin preparing for the next contest.