Student’s Smog Ad Is a Clear Winner

A seventh-grader at George Ellery Hale Middle School in Woodland Hills was praised Wednesday for winning a contest sponsored by the California Smog Check program.

John Lee, 13, topped students from more than 950 schools statewide with his “Smog! Spoils the Earth!” ad, which ran in Wednesday’s edition of The Times.

“We need students like John to help generate an understanding of the problems of smog,” said Patrick Dorais, deputy chief of the Smog Check program.

In the ad, John explains where smog comes from, why and how it can be harmful, and how, by maintaining vehicles and reducing the use of certain chemicals, smog can be defeated. An ailing Earth with a thermometer in its mouth is pictured in the ad’s center. Below, a beat-up car spews black exhaust.

“I tried to find a good visual to go with what we learned,” said the aspiring engineer.

Along with a copy of his published ad, John received a certificate and a bright yellow T-shirt. He is a student in teacher Niles Kaplan’s science class, which received a 32-inch color television and a VCR from contest sponsor Hitachi Ltd.

“It’s nice to win something like this,” said John.

It was the second year for the contest, which is run by the state to promote smog awareness and sponsored by the California Department of Consumer Affairs/Bureau of Automotive Repair and Times in Education.

This year, students in more than 950 classes participated in the special curriculum and studied smog.