Students put their own spin on national art contest
Four transform record player into tribute to music’s power to connect
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LEWISTOWN -- Before playlists lived in pockets and music streamed with a tap, finding a favorite song often meant flipping through stacks of vinyl records in a local shop.
Four Mifflin County High School students turned that shared musical tradition into a work of art, transforming a classic Crosley record player into a colorful tribute to connection, community and the universal language of music.
Advanced Art students Jade Bratton, Makayla Carter, Cece Havice and Sierra Scyoc recently earned a place in the annual Crosley Custom Cruiser Contest, joining just 250 high schools from across the country selected to participate in this year’s national challenge.
The annual contest places a functional record player and matching record crate into the hands of student artists and challenges them to create something entirely new.
This year’s theme, “Crate Culture,” encouraged participants to explore the history, traditions and personal connections surrounding vinyl records, record stores and the music that has shaped generations of listeners.
For the Mifflin County team, the assignment quickly became about more than paint and design. Rather than creating a decorative piece, the students envisioned a project centered on the idea that music has the power to bring people together. Their entry, titled "Connectivity with Crosley," uses imagery of people, flowers and records to illustrate how shared musical experiences can bridge differences in age, race and gender.
“With this project of painting a Crosley record player, we decided to draw from the idea of connecting different races, generations and genders by using the universal language of music available in your local record store,” Scyoc explained.
“Music bridges the gap between all types of people: old or young, black or white, or male or female, everyone can be joined together through listening to different genres of music found in record stores," Scyoc added.
For Havice, watching the design take shape from a collection of ideas into a finished submission was especially rewarding. “I really enjoyed seeing all of our ideas come to life,” she said.
Carter played a key role in bringing many of those visual elements to completion. “I really enjoyed helping out with drawing the flowers and records on it,” she shared. “I helped with the faces a little as well.”
The project came together under a tight deadline, requiring planning, teamwork and long hours of focused work. According to Mifflin County High School art teacher Jennifer Hartzler, the students rose to the challenge while keeping their positive message at the heart of the design.
“I am beyond proud of how these students worked together under such a tight deadline,” Hartzler said. “They were so creative in their direction and they opted to share such a thoughtful, positive message. They put a lot of heart into this piece, and it shows in every detail.”
Now officially submitted for judging, the project will compete against entries from schools across the nation. In addition to recognition, the contest offers meaningful support for participating art programs. The grand-prize-winning school will receive $2,500 for its art department, while schools placing second through fifth will receive $500.
Community members will also have an opportunity to help the students’ chances through public voting. Voting will be available online at
www.crosleyradio.com/pages/cruiser-contest from Monday through Saturday. Each person can vote once daily.