Cal Poly Students Win 14 Awards in National Floral Design Competition

SAN LUIS OBISPO – Cal Poly floral design students were awarded 14 top 10 honors in the National Student Floral Design Contest held recently in Palm Desert, as part of the American Institute of Floral Design Symposium.

Members of the Mustang Floral Design Team received more overall top 10 awards than any other school in the competition. In addition to the 14 awards, Cal Poly team member Nicolette Lynch was awarded a $1,500 scholarship from the AIFD Foundation for the 2007-08 school year. This year’s competition included teams from 15 colleges and universities in the United States and Canada, In all, 60 students participated.

Cal Poly floral design team members were Sonny Pulido, Tracey Waples, Nicolette Lynch, Desiree Houston , Heather Ephraim, and Shannon Carlisle, accompanied by Cal Poly Professor and team coach Melinda Lynch. The students competed in five categories: Bridal Bouquet, Buffet Arrangement, Bridal Table Centerpiece, Napkin Ring, and Dry Arrangement.

Individual results for Cal Poly Floral Design Team members:

Bridal Bouquet: Ephraim, fourth; Waples, fifth
Buffet Arrangement: Ephraim, fourth; Waples, sixth; Carlisle, seventh
Bridal Table Centerpiece: Lynch, fourth; Carlisle, fifth; Waples, sixth; Pulido, seventh
Dry Arrangement: Waples, eighth, Ephraim, eighth
Overall: Waples, seventh; Ephraim, eighth; Carlisle, tenth

The team also assisted professional designers Tomas de Bruyne, Per Benjamin, Max van de Sluis, Jerry Toh, Michael Quesada, and Carol Caggiano with their floral design shows at the AIFD Symposium.

Alumni of the Cal Poly student chapter of AIFD Jennifer Hart and Liz Brown were both inducted as members in AIFD during the symposium. In addition, Cal Poly alumni Christine Lancaster-Henderson, Debbie Alvarez and Jenny McNiece passed the AIFD Accreditation Testing and will be inducted at the 2008 AIFD National Symposium in Chicago, Ill.

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Note to editor’s: For a jpg photo of the Cal Poly Floral Design Team, contact thendrix@calpoly.edu.