Andrew Firestone Calling all civic-minded shutterbugs! The Somerville Public Schools have opened up a photography contest this week and all are encouraged to send their favorite shots of iconic moments in Somerville education. The contest will host three categories, for students and adults as well as the best historical shot from the archives, and all are encouraged to submit their best photographs digitally on the Somerville Public School website.

Gretchen Kinder, coordinator of R&D, Public Information and Grants, and organizer of the contest, hopes that this year's submissions will showcase the excitement inherent in Somerville's highly ranked public education. What Kinder is looking for in submissions is, "a sense of how members of our community understand the story of learning in Somerville." Keeping with the open-attitude of the All-America City, Kinder said she is looking forward to a diverse selection of experiences captured: "It may be an iconic picture of students wearing their class-day beanies [at Somerville High]. For somebody else it could be adult-learners, hard at work studying for their G.E.D. exam. It may be pictures of children hard at work on the playground, playing and learning social interactions. Our goal is to figure out "how do other people understand education" and how do they understand education through pictures."

"Learning and public education is an essential part of city life here in Somerville," said Kinder, relating the many advantages that Somerville's public school system has, including the championing of music programs in their curriculum, as well as vocational learning and even marketing classes. "Ours is a system that encourages students to explore from as young as preschool to our Somerville adult evening school that encourages adult learners continue to cultivate new knowledge, new skills and new ideas, and most of what we offer is free, or at extraordinary low cost relative to our neighboring communities."

However, in advertising Kinder's vision, she found it was best to bring in viewpoints from the many people who benefit from Somerville's many programs. "Many people have said to me, 'Gretchen you're supposed to say good things about the schools, we want to hear from real people.'" Taking up that course of action, Kinder started this contest in order "to share the stories from real people with parents and guardians who are considering the Somerville public schools for their child."

The contest, which began on March 1st runs through April 5th. Submissions and more information may be found at www.somerville.k12.ma.us/photocontest.