T-Shirt Design Contest

This Year's Theme:

Graphics is Lit!

Our goal is to drive interest in Graphic Communications job pathways and inspire thought around design reproduction that jumps off the screen!

You are invited to bring your creativity and talent to the T-Shirt Design Contest by creating an original design inspired by this year’s contest theme. Show how your ideas can translate from screen to print through apparel graphics that are creative, visually engaging, and production-ready.

Your Future in Graphic Communications

Purpose:

To create a design that will be sold as apparel in The FGCE store to helps us raise funds for future scholarships.

Design Direction:

There are a few required graphic elements and text listed below that must be incorporated into your design and easy for your audience to see. Please take these into consideration as you develop your creative, eye-catching visuals!

T-Shirt design entires must include the following elements:

Prominently display the FGCE name and logo as part of your design
A message that relates to the theme
Bright and highly visible colors are great! Assume your design will be printed on basic colors such as black or white, so utilize a full color design. PGSF reserves right to adjust any element of the design to ensure printability
Be sure to also consider design size and placement when creating your design. Finished print size can range from 9-13 wide and 13-18in long. If you want to include a sleeve or other side, you are welcome to do so

Submission Requirements:

Create a high-resolution PDF: images 300dpi, 4/color process (CMYK)
Prominently display Print and Graphics Scholarship Foundation name and logo as part of your design
The winner of the contest must submit all files required for reproduction. Files become the property of PGSF.
Use of AI: Students are highly encouraged to generate original concepts, artwork and editing using the digital and analog tools available to them. We appreciate the use of AI as a resource in the creative process, but submissions must be an original design created by the individual tapping into their own library of skills.
Please only submit ONE PDF per design. If you chose to create designs for the front and back of the T-Shirt, both should be together in ONE single file

Naming Your Final PDF Files:

High School Students: Firstname_lastname_schoolname_tshirt_2026_HighSchool

Post Secondary Student: Firstname_lastname_schoolname_tshirt_2026_PostSecondary

Disclaimer and Contest Rules:

All Design Contest Files submitted become the property of FGCE and could be used to promote our Student and Educator engagement, which includes outbound communications about our FGCE Scholarship and Grant Programs. We may request native files. Attribution to the designer will be given on all uses unless otherwise requested. Design file imagery could be applied to social media, website, printed materials, t-shirts and other communication and fundraising products.

Entries submitted with missing elements and/or incorrect specifications will be disqualified.

Contest is now closed. Judging will begin March 2026 and the winner will be notified by May 1st, 2026.

If you have any questions, please email dianne.bullas@thefgce.com or call 503-572-6610.

2025–2026 APPLICATIONS

Closed

Deadline: March 16, 2026

Review: Begins March 2026

Winners Announced: May, 1 2026

AT A GLANCE

Design Elements

T-Shirt design entries must include the following elements:

GET STARTED