ILCA State Champ Landscape Design

Andrew Weston holds his state champ landscape design in the TCD greenhouse.

Andrew Weston of Warrenville earned a first place in the 2011 ILCA State Landscape Design Competition, High School CAD division. The ILCA (Illinois Landscape Contractors Association) announced the winners at an awards banquet on March 11. Weston is a second year student in the Landscape Design & Management program at Technology Center of DuPage in Addison and a senior from Wheaton Warrenville South H.S. He enrolled in the TCD program as an elective part of his high school curriculum and is a member of the TCD chapter of the National FFA Organization (for students in agriculture, horticulture, and landscape design and management). Weston plans to attend the University of Wisconsin to major in forestry.

The contest design had to follow intent and criteria supplied by the contest organizers: to create an inviting, safe entrance for a home in a retirement community; and to develop a private backyard space for entertaining family and friends. Judging criteria included plant selection, client family needs, function, and presentation. The students developed their designs and plans using DynaSCAPE, software specifically for landscape design. Judges included ILCA members who are either professional architects/designers or advanced landscape architect/designer students. The ILCA and the Naperville Central FFA chapter sponsored this state contest.

In February, the Horticulture Department of College of DuPage sponsored an Invitational Floral Design contest for students from across the state, from both FFA and non-FFA affiliated schools. TCD placed second among the FFA Section 8 participants and 11th overall. TCD team members included Andrew Weston, Nick Weisbrock, and Christian Garcia (all students from Wheaton Warrenville South H.S.), and Jonathan Drover (Westmont H.S.). The contest included corsage construction, creation of an oval centerpiece arrangement, a written exam, and an identification exam.