Establishing Judging Dates
Establish judging dates based on the date entries are due within your school, the deadline for submitting entries to the next level of judging, and the number of entries you expect to receive. If your unit participates in all six arts areas of the Reflections Program, expect to need at least two weeks for the judging process, and another two to three weeks to prepare artwork for the next level of judging.

Recruiting Judges
All judges should have a working knowledge of their assigned arts area. Sources of judges might include:

• Art, literature, dance, film, journalism, and music educators or college/university professors
  
• Teachers from other schools participating in the Reflections Program
  
• Art museum directors, docents, curators, or historians
  
• Professional photographers and local artists
  
• Local symphony orchestra or choral directors, musicians, conductors, or composers
  
• Local dance conservatories, dance studios, ballets, or theaters
  
• Local multimedia/video production companies
  
• Newspaper journalists, editors, or photographers
  
• Local television stations
  
• Arts advocacy organization presidents or directors
  

Inviting professionals in the arts or influential community leaders to participate in Reflections Program judging increases the exposure of your PTA, its work, and the wonderful benefits students derive from participating in the arts.

Once judges are selected, provide them with the General Student Participation Rules and their Arts category Rules, as well as the Judging Rubric.

Remember to recognize judges in promotions and thank them for their participation. Some PTAs provide each judge with a small gift or certificate of appreciation.

Avoiding Conflicts of Interest
It is always preferable to conduct Blind Judging. Teachers from the host school may know student work and/or have a conflict of interest in judging, so it is better, whenever possible, to invite teachers from another school that offers the Reflections Program.

File names are listed in the bottom right hand corner of all forms so that student names can be easily covered or so that the bottom of the form can simply be folded over during the judging process.

Beyond the local PTA level, blind judging will need to occur only if there is a chance that the judges may know a student. In most situations, judges at the council and district/region levels should be able to use the original materials for judging.

Judging at the National Level
All national entries are judged on artistic merit/creativity, mastery of the medium, and interpretation of the theme. Mastery of the medium in the context of the national Reflections Program pertains to the level of skill the student demonstrates in the basic principles/techniques of the arts category. Entries will be judged primarily on how well the student uses his or her artistic vision to portray the theme.

At national levels, the submission in each arts category that best interprets the theme is selected for the Outstanding Interpretation Award. There are a total of six Outstanding Interpretation Award recipients, one in each arts area. Three Awards of Excellence and Five Awards of Merit are also selected within each of the six arts categories.

Tiebreakers
If two entries are judged as equal across all areas, the entry that best interprets the theme receives more recognition.

A local, council, or district/region judging process could have a similar design.

Sample Judging Rubric
See the sample judging rubrics in the Local Arts Chairs' Guide.