Trash Can Contest

MoDOT sponsors the contest as part of Missouri's "No MOre Trash!" campaign to raise awareness and discourage littering. The contest encourages students from kindergarten through eighth grade to join the fight against litter by decorating and displaying a large trashcan with the "No MOre Trash!" logo and a litter prevention message using a variety of creative mediums.

MoDOT thanks all of its 2023 participants for their amazing entries! To view all 2023 entries, please click here.

The Rules

Decorate a 30-gallon (or larger) trash can to be located in a prominent area of the school or community. Each design must include the No MOre Trash! logo and a litter-prevention slogan. Use of recycled materials is encouraged. Only entries submitted by Missouri schools, including home schools, will be accepted. Schools may submit one entry in each category: grades K-2, 3-5 and 6-8. Entries must consist of a completed entry form and up to three photographs (photos must be in-focus, provide clear images of the project, and one should include participants). Schools should submit a release form for use of the photo if your school is one of the winners.

The Prizes

The grand prize winner will receive $600 and a trophy. $200 will be awarded to one entry in each competition category. The grand prize winner will have their trash can displayed at the MoDOT building on the State Fairgrounds during the State Fair in August, with permission of the winning school.

2023 Winners

K-2 Grade Category And Grand Prize

Congratulations to teacher Ginnifer Fuemmeler and their K-2 students at Hannah Cole Primary School in Boonville on winning the K-2 category and the grand prize for their “One Man’s Trash, Another Child’s Treasure” entry!

“Students kindergarten through second grade have heard the ‘one man's trash’ saying in our classroom all year long, so when it came time to pick a theme for our can, they immediately thought of using the recyclables in our room,” wrote Fuemmeler in their submission entry. “Not only did students learn about tremendous possibilities when reusing trash, they were also able to study native plants in our area and the value they hold.”

The school will receive a check for $200 for the category win as well as $600 and a trophy as the grand prize winner.

3-5 Grade Category

Congratulations to teacher Daniel Schaefer and their 4^th graders at Kingdom Christian Academy in Fulton on winning the 3-5 category for their “Gotta Catch MO Trash” entry!

“The students came up with the ‘Gotta Catch MO Trash’ to play off the already ‘No MOre Trash,’” Schaefer wrote in their submission entry. “The trash can will be used as the school's new soda can recycling bin and is located in the lunchroom for all to see and talk about.”

The school will receive a check for $200 for the category win.

6-8 Grade Category

Congratulations to teacher Hannah Shaw and their 7^th graders at Liberal R-II Middle School in Liberal on winning the 6-8 category for their entry, “Don’t ‘Leaf’ Your Trash Behind!”

“By bringing up the idea of pollution in a lighthearted way, their goal was to bring some comedy to a serious topic,” wrote Shaw in their submission entry. “With this approach, they felt like people were more likely to look at their own habits when it comes to littering.”

The school will receive a check for $200 for the category win.