About the Contest

Students were encouraged to submit entries that highlight the theme of the contest, and express in their own creativity how to鈥�Keep Christ in Christmas.鈥疻e welcomed entries from HCDSB students of all ages and abilities! 

Students submitted entries in the following four (4) formats: 

  • Visual artwork鈥�(drawing, painting, photography, collage, sculpture, 3D model, etc.) 
  • Original song (written/composed by student. No cover songs or performances of existing songs) 
  • Short video鈥�(under 3 minutes 鈥� TikTok videos are also accepted!) 
  • Short story or poem鈥�(up to 250 words) 

Submission Period 

The submission period took place from Friday, October 17 through Sunday, November 9, 2025.

How Were Entries Judged?

Student submissions were reviewed separately by division, as follows: Primary (K-3), Junior (4-6), Intermediate (7-8), and Secondary (9-12). Finalists in each division were selected, and parents/guardians of the finalists were contacted directly. Online voting selected the top winners in each division!

A judging panel narrowed down entries by selecting the submissions that demonstrated creativity and originality and best illustrated the theme of the contest. The judging panel did not receive any personal information about contestants (name, age, gender, school, etc.), or any additional information that may influence the selection process. Finalists included: three (3) separate submissions in each of the four (4) student divisions listed above.

Congratulations to our Finalists and Top Winners!

HCDSB 2025 Keeping Christ in Christmas Student finalists

On December 10th, 2025, the 嫩芽视频 (HCDSB) in partnership with the Halton OECTA Elementary Association and the Halton OECTA Secondary Association hosted a special awards presentation at Corpus Christi Catholic Secondary School in Burlington.

This year marked the first time since the contest began 13 years ago that the awards presentation was held at a school, rather than at a Regular Board Meeting at the Catholic Education Centre. By making this change, we were able to welcome more family members and school staff, and dedicate the time and additional space to showcase the incredible talent of our students during a full night of celebration!

A Special Note of Thanks!

Our sincere appreciation goes to the Halton OECTA Elementary Association and the Halton OECTA Secondary Association for generously sponsoring the contest through the top prizes awarded to our student winners. We also thank OECTA for their dedication and commitment to the judging process, as well as for their generous contribution to the hospitality portion of the event.

Special thanks to Tara Hambly, President of the Halton OECTA Elementary Association, and Michelle Teixeira, President of the Halton OECTA Secondary Association, for their time, leadership, and support in presenting at the awards ceremony.

础鈥�huge thank you goes out to the Corpus Christi school community 鈥� in particular Teacher Rick Karniej鈥� and Teacher Bonnie March and the Corpus Christi students who were at the event making sure the A/V system ran smoothly and hospitality was provided to guests. Mr. Karniej and his students were instrumental in preparing the school for the evening鈥檚 performances, and responsible for created the beautiful stage set design.

Special thanks to members of our Judging Panel this year:

  • John Klein, Director of Education
  • Marvin Duarte, Chair of the Board
  • Janet O鈥橦earn-Czarnota, Vice-Chair of the Board
  • Siobhan Crosson, Religious Education, Family Life & The Arts Curriculum Consultant
  • Sita Jayaraman, Senior Manager, Human Rights and Equity
  • Reona Richardson, Special Education Coordinator
  • Tara Hambly, President, Halton OECTA Elementary Association 
  • Krista Hutchinson, Vice-President, Halton OECTA Elementary Association
  • Michelle Teixeira, President, Halton OECTA Secondary Association 
  • Paul Ferguson, Vice-President, Halton OECTA Secondary Association

Congratulations to Our Top Winners:

Leonie D, K-3 division

Creative Craft: Sewn Nativity Scene

Blythe D, Grades 4-6 division

Watercolour Art: Jesus in a manger

Grace B, Grades 7-8 division

Short Story: The Gift of Two Worlds

Mojoyin S, Grades 9-12 division

Original Song: Unfathomable Love

Sponsors

Thank you to Halton OECTA Elementary Association and the Halton OECTA Secondary Association for their generous donations of the top prizes and for sponsoring the contest! 

Questions?

If you have any questions about the contest, please feel free to email us at: keepingchrist@hcdsb.org

Parent Consent

The 嫩芽视频 and your child/ren鈥檚 school collect student information under the legal authority of The Education Act and its attendant regulations, as well as The Immunization of School Pupils Act and The Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. During the school year, students may be involved in a wide variety of events and activities and it is an established practice for the Board and its schools to display and communicate information about these activities through a variety of channels. Parents and guardians of all student entrants must have completed and returned to their school, the Family/Information Consent Form, which is typically collected by each elementary school at the start of every school year. In secondary schools, this form is part of option sheets.鈥嬧�嬧��