Vans Crowns John P. Stevens High School Winner of the 2016 Vans Custom Culture Design Competition

CYPRESS, Calif., June 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Vans, the original action sports and youth culture brand, is proud to welcome John P. Stevens High School from Edison, N.J. to the ranks of winners of the Vans Custom Culture design competition. As the grand-prize winner, John P. Stevens High School has been awarded a donation of $50,000 for the school's arts education programs to help foster the students' #RightToArt and support the next generation of creative individuals.

In partnership with Americans for the Arts, Journeys, truth®, Laguna College of Art and Design and Blick Art Materials, Vans hosted the top five high school finalists at a final event held on June 8 at MAMA Gallery in downtown Los Angeles. Vans reached out to creative minds across action sports, art, music and street culture to form a panel of judges that exemplify what it means to invest in the creativity of their respective talents. This year, YouTube personality Maddi Bragg, Vans professional surfer Dylan Graves and top chefs Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo behind Los Angeles restaurants Animal, Jon & Vinny's and Son of a Gun, as well as special musical guest Echosmith, selected the winning custom Vans shoe designs among a talented group of young artists representing the top five high ­­schools. The remaining finalists – Eastern High School (Louisville, Ky.), Moanalua High School (Honolulu, Hawaii), Orange High School (Orange, Calif.) and Sandy High School (Sandy, Ore.) were each awarded $4,000 on behalf of Vans toward their arts programs.

"Art has always been an essential ingredient of the Vans DNA. Whether it was through creating custom footwear for the skateboarders of the Dogtown era or young kids doodling checkerboard across their sneakers, Vans have been a canvas of expression for 50 years," said Kevin Bailey, VF and Vans Global Action Sports and Outdoor Brand President. "We created Vans Custom Culture to not only raise awareness of declining arts education budgets across the country, but because we also inherently believe that today's youth deserve the Right to Art. As such, it is our duty to provide a platform that enables creative expression for generations to come."

Now in its seventh year, the Vans Custom Culture competition continues to inspire and empower creativity among high school students across the country. Since the inaugural competition, more than 10 percent of high schools nationally have participated in Vans Custom Culture and more than $600,000 has been contributed to support arts programs. Nearly 3,000 high schools registered for this year's competition, designing four pairs of blank Vans based on four themes: Action Sports, Art, Music and Local Flavor. One of the designs from the grand-prize winners, John P. Stevens High School, has the opportunity to be produced and sold in select Vans retail stores, as well as online at Vans.com.

In addition to the grand prize, Vans donated an additional $50,000 to non-profit partner, Americans for the Arts, the nation's leading organization for advancing the arts and art education. This year, Vans Custom Culture was recognized for its innovative charitable approach, taking home top honors in the education category for the 2016 Cause Marketing Halo Awards.

Vans Custom Culture partners Journeys, truth® and Laguna College of Art and Design also provided participating schools the opportunity to raise additional funds for their art education programs. As a long time Vans partner, Journeys awarded a $15,000 'Local Attitude' award to Moanalua High School for creating the most compelling 'local flavor' design.

truth®, one of the nation's most successful and longest running youth smoking prevention campaign, challenged the students to customize a skate deck inspired by their reaction to a raw fact about tobacco. Station Camp High School in Gallatin, Tenn., took home the $10,000 truth® donation, for its winning design that shows what it looks like when smoking is finished for good.

Finally, Laguna College of Art and Design, a premier national art and design college and the first to offer a BFA degree in Action Sports design, partnered with Vans to provide the opportunity for every single student that participated in the 2016 competition the chance to apply for a $25,000 scholarship to be received upon admission. Almost 80 students will be eligible for the scholarship, which will enable them to continue their creative path and earn their BFA in Design + Digital Media.

To view pictures from the final event please click here and for more information on Vans Custom Culture visit Vans.com/CustomCulture. Follow the movement on Instagram @vans.custom.culture and by using the hashtags #RightToArt and #VansCustomCulture.

About Vans

Vans^®, a VF Corporation (NYSE: VFC) brand, is the original action sports footwear, apparel and accessories brand. Vans authentic collections are sold globally in more than 75 countries through a network of subsidiaries, distributors and international offices. Vans also owns and operates nearly 600 retail locations around the world. The Vans brand promotes the action sports lifestyle, youth culture and creative self-expression through the support of athletes, musicians and artists and through progressive events and platforms such as the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing^®, the Vans U.S. Open of Surfing, Vans Pool Party, Vans Custom Culture, Vans Warped Tour^®, and Vans' cultural hub and international music venue, the House of Vans.

About Americans for the Arts

Americans for the Arts is the leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education in America. With offices in Washington, D.C. and New York City, it has a record of more than 50 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts. Additional information is available at www.AmericansForTheArts.org.

About truth

truth® is one of the most successful and one of the largest national youth tobacco prevention campaigns. The campaign exposes the tactics of the tobacco industry, the truth about addiction, and the health effects and social consequences of smoking. truth gives teens facts to make their own informed choices about tobacco use and inspires them to use their social influence and creativity in the fight against tobacco. The campaign is credited with preventing hundreds of thousands of teens from starting to smoke, and is working to make this the generation that ends smoking for good. To learn more, visit thetruth.com. truth is part of Truth Initiative, a national public health organization dedicated to achieving a culture where all youth and young adults reject tobacco. To learn more about Truth Initiative's work speaking, seeking and spreading the truth about tobacco, visit truthinitiative.org.

About Journeys

Journeys is a leader in the teen specialty retail scene, with more than 800 stores in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Canada. Journeys uses fashion savvy and merchandising science to keep in step with the fast-paced footwear and accessories market for 13- to 22-year-old guys and girls. Journeys offers a wide variety of trendy, relevant brands that cater to teens who seek the hottest, new styles. The Journeys store is more than a retail environment; it's an extension of the teen lifestyle. From the plasma TVs playing exclusive content and the latest music videos, to the visual merchandising strategy and promotions, to the employees whose image and style reflect the customers' lifestyle and attitude. In addition, Journeys reaches its customers through www.journeys.com, a mobile website, catalog, national advertising, strategic cross-promotions, social media and grass-roots events like The Journeys Noise Tour. Journeys is, in every way, an attitude you can wear!

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Vans: Laura Doherty, (714) 889-3114, Laura_Doherty@vfc.com

Edelman: Parinaz Farzin, (323) 202-1892, parinaz.farzin@edelman.com

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SOURCE Vans