Organized by parents who sit on Bret Harte's Technology Committee, the contest drew entries from 40 students who designed Microsoft PowerPoint presentations on everything from the Salem witch trials to classical dances of India. Eight finalists made their presentations at the Apple Computer store at Westfield Valley Fair Shopping Center, where assistant store manager Kawika Holbrook served as judge.

Bret Harte staff, students and parents all turned out for the final judging and viewed each entry in the store's theater. The finalists were sixth-graders Aveling Pan and Vishall Dokras and eighth-graders Jake Martarano, Vivek Musinipally, Nupur Dokras, Paul Kang, David Namkoong and Chelsea Mao.

Judging the content and technical merit of their entries with equal weight, Holbrook declared a tie for first place between Musinipally and the brother-and-sister Dokras team. Musinipally created his presentation about a subject he's intimately familiar with--"Life at Bret Harte Middle School"--while the Dokras siblings went back to ancient Egypt for their presentation, entitled "Who Killed King Tut?" The first-place winners all received iPod digital music players, courtesy of the Apple store.

"It's really great," Musinipally said of his prize. The eighth-grader revealed his musical tastes when asked to name his favorite contest entry. "There was another presentation on Metallica I really liked a lot," he said.

Pan and Mao were named the runners-up for their respective presentations on France and colonial America. Both girls were awarded Apple software packages.

Many students who entered the contest produced their PowerPoint presentations during a publications class taught by Jennifer Apodaca. However, the winners all created their presentations on their own time, said Bret Harte Community Club member Louise Gill.

Musinipally created his presentation on his home computer. "I knew a little bit, but I learned a lot as I went along," he said.

Principal Donald McCloskey said the contest highlighted the importance of technology in the classroom. "It was a fantastic event on a number of levels: The teacher support was excellent, and the presentations by the students were inspiring," McCloskey added. "This was a reminder of what can be achieved when we create new challenges for our students."

The PowerPoint Design Contest was the first such competition organized by the technology committee. Gill said committee members are planning an iMovie Design Contest for the spring.

When asked if he planned to enter the iMovie contest, Musinipally replied, "Of course. It seems pretty fun."