Anticipation Builds in Urbandale as Countdown for ‘Doodle 4 Google’ Finalists Begins

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Anticipation is building for Urbandale Middle School eighth grader Marissa Frost, who’ll learn this week if she’s one of five national finalists in Doodle 4 Google, the giant technology company’s contest to redesign its iconic homepage logo.

Frost and the other finalists have been invited to New York City, where the five finalists and the national winner will be announced Wednesday.

The winner receives a $30,000 college scholarship, along with a trip to New York City for the final awards ceremony, a Google Chromebook, a Wacom digital design tablet, and a t-shirt with the winning doodle printed on the front.

The national winner’s school will receive a $50,000 grant to go toward a computer lab or technology programming. The four national finalists will take home $5,000 educational grants to be given to the school of their choice as well as a trip to the awards ceremony. They will also receive Wacom digital design tablets and t-shirts with their winning doodles printed on the m.

This year’s theme asked students to create a doodle based on their “best day ever.”

“Helping to make others healthier would make my day the best ever,” she wrote with her submission in the contest, which spells out “google” with a microscope, magnifying glass, atoms, a test tube and a laboratory rat.

Google’s Kate Kolbert-Hyle, one of two representatives from the Internet company who attended an assembly earlier this spring honoring the Urbandale student, thinks Frost’s drawing has a good chance of winning the big prize.

“We love that it’s about science and technology,” Kolbert-Hyl she said. “We see technology as making so much change.

“It’s so totally on message,” she said. “I love this doodle.”

This year’s final selection will be made by a panel that includes:

• Katie Couric - Journalist and TV-personality

• Deborah Feingold - Photographer

• Brian Henson - Chairman of The Jim Henson Company, director, producer, writer and puppeteer

Related: Iowa’s ‘Doodle 4 Google’ Winner Is Also State’s STEM Education Poster Girl

Track the days, hours, minutes and seconds remaining until the announcement.