FAMILIAL grief had been weighing heavily on Guy’s Hill High School fifth former Tiona Skeen’s mind.

Her cosmetologist mother Ayecia Nelson had recently transitioned due to kidney failure. The wake and funeral arrangements were well under way.

Amid this emotionally charged time, a welcome burst of sunshine brightened Tiona’s day two weeks ago. She was declared winner of the Area 5 Transforming Our Police Service (TOPS) Poster Competition for secondary school students.

“Honestly, I was surprised, excited, and a bit nervous when my name was announced. My heart started racing because I truly didn’t expect it,” Tiona recounted of the crystallised memory of her artwork beating all entrants.

The visual arts competition was part of the TOPS Awards Ceremony staged by the Police Civilian Oversight Authority (PCOA) on December 18 to honour law enforcement officers in the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s Area 5, spanning the St Thomas, St Andrew North, St Catherine North, and St Catherine divisions.

Quietly observant in the back row of the audience at the celebratory event held at the National Police College of Jamaica at Twickenham Park, St Catherine, the unassuming Tiona watched five other high school art students stride to the elevated platform beaming with joy as each was given honours.

Now, her triumphant strut to glory had arrived.

“I was just trying to process what was happening. I was extremely happy and proud, not only of winning but all that hard work that I put into that poster. It felt like everything came together perfectly at that moment. The main thought that was running through my mind was: ‘Did I really win this?’

“It felt unreal, it was like a dream,” shared the smiling 17-year-old who wants to become a criminologist.

For her first-placed artistic rendering, which she titled ‘Partnerships for Progress’, Tiona was awarded a cash prize. Additionally, she received a tablet, headphones from Comfort Air Engineering, a gift basket from Jamaica Biscuit Company, and a gift from PCOA.

Much like her second- and third-place artist peers, the Guy’s Hill student was thrown for a loop when she discovered the financial windfall attached to the all-girls top-three finish.

“I am very grateful for the cash prize. I plan to save it and use towards my college expenses in the future,” she shared.

Detailing the story behind her artwork, the teenager, who is the eldest of three siblings for her late mother and freelance decorator father, said: “I was inspired by police officers who often visit my school and how they interacted with students positively. I wanted my poster to show the police not only as crime fighters but also as persons who are caring and working hard to build good relationships with citizens. This piece took me two weeks to complete, but I managed to pull it off.”

As to the post-win feedback she’s received, Tiona revealed that “some of my schoolmates texted to congratulate me and say how proud they were. A few of them jokingly said I should split the cash prize or even give it all to them. A few were surprised because I hadn’t announced that I had entered the competition or that I was going to collect an award. The responses have been positive and supportive, which made the experience way better.”

Tiona’s road to victory began in early October.

Her Guy’s Hill High art educator Antoniette Barton had thumb-tacked a promotion about the TOPS poster contest on the notice board in the arts room.

“Tiona was one of the students who enquired about it and so I motivated her to enter,” said Barton, who this academic semester will have devoted two full-time years in the classroom at the St Catherine secondary institution.

“Based on previous conversations, Tiona would have told me that she had an interest in criminology and I knew she had good artistic skills, so a competition of this nature, where she could combine her interests and talent, I think it was very fitting,” said Barton.

The art educator admitted that prior to entering the poster competition “I had very little knowledge of the PCOA and the TOPS competition, [but] having now participated, I see it as an excellent medium for students to showcase their talent and creativity”.

She added: “It gives students the opportunity to highlight what they see as positivity within the police force. The ceremony itself was well organised, and seeing the different categories of winners I was happy to have been a part of it, and it gave Guy’s Hill High School the opportunity to be acknowledged on such a platform.”

Barton’s prize winnings included a customised leather pouch from Bresheh, a weekend for two at Sea Cliff Resort in Portland, a gift basket from All Wrapped Up, and a gift bag from the PCOA.

Meanwhile, second-place winner Jiselle Wallace, who attends Spanish Town High School, recalled that upon hearing her name being announced, “I swear I felt my heart stop”.

Encouraged by her art teacher Tyrone Rowe to give the TOPS poster contest a try, the 14-year-old shared: “He said I had been invited to the competition and he already signed me up. I was very shocked and explained to him that I had social anxiety and stage fright, but he said I can’t back out now.”

Jiselle took on the challenge.

“I researched everything I could and read through all the information Google gave me about PCOA,” she recounted of her starting point for the submission that features vignettes of policing duties.

“What inspired me was the work the police are doing for Jamaica. It took me a week to find the right materials to produce my drawings as I like when my work is perfect. Plus I had to be juggling regular schoolwork, too,” Jiselle explained.

Her thoughtful artistic expression, titled Make Jamaicans Feel Safe, earned a cash prize along with a tablet, headphones, gift basket, and a swag bag.

For her mentor Rowe, who marks his first-year anniversary as a faculty member at Spanish Town High after previously working at Kingston College for three years, he is happy that his chosen profession has an impact.

“Destiny would have it for me to be an art teacher,” shared the Edna Manley College for the Visual and Performing Arts alumni. “I made a conscious decision to make it a career for me and I can see that it has imparted on a lot of students who I have encountered, and that is the greatest part about it: The beauty of seeing that you can inspire another person to choose art.”

Rowe copped a dinner for two at Jolly’s Restaurant in Portmore, a gift basket from All Wrapped Up, a gift box from Vicbern Roofing, among his prizes.

For Caitlin Cookes, claiming third place was sweet satisfaction for her entry,
Cameras On, Trust On.

“I felt like my hard work paid off and my parents would be so proud of me,” relayed the Victory Academy third-former.

Caitlin’s pharmacist mother Susan Hoo Fung Cookes escorted both her and art educator Sashawna Buckland to the awards ceremony.

“I had learnt about this TOPS poster competition in late September and Miss Buckland was the one who nudged me to create this work of art,” the teenager noted of her submission. “It is supposed to depict when police officers have their cameras on, it will earn the trust of civilians, and they will be more accountable for their actions. The piece took me about two weeks to complete.”

While she does consider herself an art enthusiast, Caitlin — who has a twin sister Chloe, also a student at the St Andrew co-ed private school — mused that “after high school I am not sure if I want to completely do the visual arts, but maybe something related to the art field; I am leaning towards architecture.”

Her mother was beside herself with glee at the turn of events.

“I was ecstatic and overjoyed. I am so proud of her,” beamed Hoo Fung Cookes. “This was the first time Caitlin entered an art-related competition. Around the time she was working on the poster, she had tests and projects to complete and was worried that she may not finish the piece in time. She would visit her art teacher at lunchtime and after school so that she could finish the poster by the October 27th due date.”

The artistic DNA runs in the family, as she revealed that, like Caitlin, her other daughter also enjoys the creative medium.

“I appreciate art, but I don’t consider myself an art lover. My sister Linda Barnes, however, was the artist in the family. She studied to be a graphic artist at Edna Manley College,” she said.

Caitlin won a cash prize, tablet, headphones, a gift basket, and a gift bag, while Buckland snagged a Sunday brunch for two at Jamaica Pegasus, a gift basket, and a gift bag.

Assessing the entries in this year’s iteration of the poster competition, chief judge Daniel Thompson said shortlisting a top six was a difficult decision.

“The submissions had a very high quality, in terms of their compositions, which were a lot more unified and structured in comparison to previous years,” explained Thompson, who is the art district project manager at Kingston Creative. “However, where some of the submissions kind of fell off was their adherence to the theme, which was ‘#AForceForGood: Partnerships for Progress’.”

In addition, the high school art students entries were also graded on the originality of their designs, creativity and visual effectiveness, and neatness.

Thompson, who led the five-person judging panel, was impressed with the diversity of the mediums used this year.

“We had quite a few submissions that were digital art, which is something we haven’t seen much. They were very advanced in terms of their digital art, which looks like they can be ready for magazines and posters.”

Launched in 2023, the TOPS Poster competition was created to allow young visual artists to express, through brushstrokes, their impressions of the police and their relationship with citizens.

Of the 30-plus secondary schools from within Area 5, seven made submissions for the contest.

Spanish Town High student Jiselle Wallace (second right) explains the inspiration behind her second-place winning artwork, Make Jamaicans Feel Safe, to minister of state in the Ministry of National Security and Peace Juliet Cuthbert-Flynn as her customer service officer father Khani Wallace (left) and art educator Tyrone Rowe look on.

The first-placed artwork in the TOPS Poster Competition, Partnerships for Progress by Guys HIll High student Tiona Skeen.

Proud Victory Academy grade nine student Caitlin Cookes alongside a framed copy of her third-place winning entry, Cameras On, Trust On, in the Area 5 TOPS Poster Competition.