South Carolina launches contest for students to write vaccine jingle

South Carolina is launching a contest for students to write a jingle to encourage residents to get the COVID-19 vaccine. 

The South Carolina Department of Education and South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control announced the combined plan on Friday to begin a “Sing It to Win It” jingle campaign. 

The campaign gives students until Jan. 31 to submit a 15- to 30-second jingle encouraging people to get the COVID-19 vaccine. 

The jingles will be judged on the agencies’ social media, and the winner will be announced Feb. 11. 

The student with the winning jingle will get to record it professionally, and their piece will be played across the state on the radio for the year.

The winner’s school will also receive $10,000 for its music program. The jingle that comes in second place will get $5,000 for their school, and the third-place jingle will get $3,000.

“This innovative jingle campaign is way to get students involved and tap into their creativity,” state Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman said. “Music has a way of bringing people together and we’re thrilled this program will also invest in school music programs.”

South Carolina has a seven-day average of more than 600 new COVID-19 cases per day, according to New York Times data. Fifty-one percent of residents of all ages are fully vaccinated in the state, and 59 percent of all South Carolina residents have received at least one shot.