NEW YORK, N.Y., November 9, 2005 — The creative work of 43 teams from 16 metro area schools will be showcased in the Third Annual Graphic Arts Design Competition for High School Students, one of the scheduled highlights of Graphic Communications Day next Wednesday, November 16, at Pier 90 in New York City. The winners of the competition, sponsored by the Association of Graphic Communications (AGC) and its Education Foundation for the Graphic Arts, will be announced at a ceremony starting at 3:00 p.m. This year, the student teams created posters for The Actors’ Fund, a nonprofit organization for members of the entertainment industry. The Actors’ Fund will use the winning poster to promote its programs and services. The competition has grown to its present size from the seven schools and 12 teams that took part in the first competition in 2003. All teams are mentored by graphic communication industry professionals who give guidance in design and production. Education and professional development are the keynotes of Graphic Communications Day, the only local expo of its kind for printers and print buyers in the NY-NJ-CT tristate area. The event’s fifth edition is expected to draw 1,500 attendees to the Pier 90 show venue on the Hudson River waterfront. Supported by more than 80 exhibitors and corporate sponsors, Graphic Communications Day will explore the theme of “Winning Strategies for Success” in a day-long agenda of panel discussions and workshops on new growth opportunities for graphics businesses. Award ceremonies and other special observances round out the program, which runs from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. AGC, the Printing Industries of America affiliate for the tristate region, owns and operates Graphic Communications Day. The location, Pier 90, is a spacious and convenient expo facility located at 50th Street and 12th Avenue near the USS Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. The event’s original home was Madison Square Garden, where exhibitor demand led to a sellout of space last year. The roster of exhibitors includes some of the best known vendors of equipment, supplies, and services for graphic communications. Providing special support are corporate sponsors Adobe, Agfa, International Paper, Kodak, MAN Roland, Quark, Ramsey Press, Stora Enso, Superior Printing Ink, TanaSeybert, Xerox, and XMPie. The educational program begins at 8:40 a.m. with a keynote address by Barry Meinerth, senior vice president-production & fulfillment of Time Inc. and a 2003 recipient of an AGC “Power of Communications” Award. After the keynote, a panel of vendor executives and trade media representatives will engage the audience in a discussion of the outlook for the industry. Seminars to follow throughout the day include expert panels on business reinvention; strategies for print buyers; and increasing print sales. Nine technical sessions will cover various digital technologies for print and review selected solutions for implementing them, including QuarkXPress 7 and the Adobe line. Attendees also will receive discounted coupons for continuing education programs from AGC’s Center for Graphic Arts Education. At 3 p.m., in addition to announcing the winners of the student design competition, AGC will salute leaders in graphic arts education with its Education Awards. A closing keynote on education will be delivered by Tom Saggiomo, president of Agfa Graphic Systems and the newly elected chairman of NPES The Association for Suppliers of Printing, Publishing and Converting Technologies. A reception with prize drawings concludes the program. Online registration for Graphic Communications Day is available at www.agcomm.org. For information about exhibiting, contact Betsy Love, conference manager, at (917) 939-9409 or [email protected]