Hawaii’s reigning shoe design champ — Moanalua High School — has again been named a national semi-finalist in the VANS Custom Culture design contest. The contest encourages schools to submit four original designs on different styles of VANS shoes.

Moanalua High is among 10 teams in the southwest region to head to the semi-finals. Fifty teams total are competing. 

The finals will feature one school from each of the five regions and will be held at the Whitney Museum of Art in New York City in May. Prizes include a $50,000 check for the school’s art program and the chance for the students designs to be produced and sold. 

Votes can be cast at www.vans.com/customculture/vote through 5:59 p.m. (Hawaii time) on Monday, May 13. 

The nine students on the Moanalua High team are Analise Austin, Raymond Feliciano, Jorjiane Guasch, Cayli Hirata, Sun Lee, Jonathan Rosen, Troy Souza, Erin Voss and Dylan White.  Rosen has been on the team for the past three years.  The team is led by art teacher Jeff Fujimoto, who has been at Moanalua for nine years.  (Photo courtesy of HIDOE.)

— Alia Wong