Christy Tobola
Floral Design Coordinator
Room: 701
Email: ctobola@bellvillebrahmas.org
The BHS Floral Design program gives students hands-on experience creating floral arrangements while developing skills in design, flower care, project planning, creativity, and presentation. Operating within Bellville’s agricultural education program, students produce floral work for school activities and participate in the fair and other competitive events. Contact Floral Design coordinator Christy Tobola for information about current projects, competitions, schedules, and opportunities to participate.
- Floral arrangements created for school events
- Austin County Fair entries and results
- Floral-design competitions and preparation
- Bouquets, centerpieces, and wearable floral designs
- Flower identification, care, and handling
- Color, balance, proportion, and design techniques
- Time-limited design challenges
- Student creativity and individual craftsmanship
- Team projects and behind-the-scenes preparation
- Certifications, awards, and student accomplishments
- Floral-industry careers and business skills
- Opportunities for students to participate
Covering the Floral Design Beat
Start Here
- Introduce yourself to Mrs. Tobola and explain that you are covering Floral Design for the BVP Newsroom.
- Ask how she prefers to be contacted and how far in advance interviews, photography, or video coverage should be arranged.
- Ask what arrangements, school projects, fair entries, or competitions students are currently preparing.
- Request the program’s calendar, including project deadlines, school events, the Austin County Fair, competitions, and other important dates.
- Ask which students are responsible for each arrangement, project, or competition entry.
- Find out where students complete their floral work and when reporters may observe or photograph them.
- Ask which competition organizations and events the program participates in and how results will be reported.
- Ask whether Bellville students pursue floral-design certifications and which certification program is used.
- Check regularly with Mrs. Tobola for new projects, schedule changes, results, and possible stories.
- Submit possible stories as pitches before beginning full coverage unless your teacher tells you otherwise.
Your Responsibilities
- Check for Floral Design updates at least once each news cycle.
- Track school projects, fair entries, competitions, certifications, and important deadlines.
- Follow arrangements from the original assignment or idea through planning, construction, and presentation.
- Watch for creative designs, difficult assignments, competition preparation, certifications, awards, and student improvement.
- Identify the students responsible for selecting materials, developing the design, constructing the arrangement, and presenting the finished work.
- Look beyond the finished arrangement to explain the design choices, techniques, preparation, challenges, and revisions behind it.
- Pitch promising stories to the newsroom.
- Arrange interviews, photography, video, and event coverage in advance.
- Confirm names, event titles, competition divisions, certifications, placements, and awards before publication.
- Photograph the design process as well as the finished arrangement.
- Follow up after projects and competitions for official results, student reactions, and information about what happens next.
Important
A floral arrangement shown during production may not be finished. Clearly distinguish among a design idea, work in progress, a completed arrangement, and an arrangement officially submitted for competition or presentation. Confirm its status and intended use with Mrs. Tobola.
Flowers and greenery are perishable, and arrangements may be changed shortly before delivery, judging, or display. Do not touch, move, rearrange, or remove materials without permission. Ask before entering work areas or photographing competition pieces prior to their official presentation.
Participation in the fair or another floral-design event does not necessarily mean that a student placed or earned certification. Clearly distinguish among participation, competition placement, advancement, and certification. Until the exact event is confirmed, describe it only as a floral-design competition, fair entry, or certification assessment. Verify official names and results with Mrs. Tobola before publication.
Reporting Your Floral Design Stories
Possible Story Ideas
- Students create arrangements for a school event
- Floral Design prepares entries for the Austin County Fair
- Students prepare for a floral-design competition
- Competition results and student awards
- A student earns a floral-design certification
- Students learn a new arrangement style or technique
- A difficult design is completed under a time limit
- Students create bouquets, centerpieces, or wearable designs
- A student demonstrates significant improvement
- The program accepts or completes a special project
- Students learn pricing, ordering, and floral-business skills
- A design changes because of unavailable or damaged materials
- Students explore careers in floral and event design
- Seniors complete their final projects
- The program reaches an important milestone
Signs There May Be A Story
Pay attention when:
- A school event, fair, competition, or project deadline is approaching
- Students begin creating arrangements for a major event
- A new design assignment or competition challenge is announced
- Students work under a strict time limit
- A design requires unusual flowers, materials, or techniques
- A student develops a particularly creative solution
- An arrangement changes significantly from the original plan
- Flowers or materials arrive damaged, late, or unavailable
- A student competes, places, earns recognition, or becomes certified
- Students complete a large group project
- A finished arrangement will be displayed prominently at school
- A student tries floral design for the first time
- The program begins offering a new service or opportunity
- Students’ work produces a visible result at a school event
Questions to Ask: The 5 W's and 1 H
You will not necessarily ask every question below. Select the questions that fit your story and ask follow-up questions whenever an answer is unclear or incomplete.
Who was involved?
- Which students created the arrangement or project?
- Who developed the original design?
- What responsibility did each student have?
- Who requested or will receive the arrangement?
- Who supervised the work?
- Who judged or confirmed the competition result?
What happened?
- What arrangement, event, competition, or project was involved?
- What type of design did students create?
- What flowers, greenery, containers, and materials were used?
- What techniques were required?
- What challenges or changes occurred?
- What was accomplished?
- What happens next?
When did it happen?
- When was the arrangement created?
- When did planning begin?
- How long did construction take?
- When will it be displayed, delivered, judged, or used?
- What deadlines did students face?
- When were results officially announced?
Where did it happen?
- Where was the arrangement created?
- Where will it be displayed or used?
- Where was the competition or fair held?
- Where did the flowers and materials come from?
- Where can students find information about participating?
Why does it matter?
- Why was the arrangement or project created?
- Why were particular flowers, colors, or materials selected?
- Why was the design appropriate for the event?
- Why was the project difficult or unusual?
- Why is the competition or certification important?
- Why is the accomplishment meaningful to the student?
How did it happen?
- How was the design planned?
- How were responsibilities divided?
- How did students prepare the flowers and greenery?
- How was balance, proportion, color, and texture used?
- How did students work within time or budget limitations?
- How were unexpected problems solved?
- How was the design evaluated or judged?
- How will the experience affect future projects?
People You May Need to Interview
Depending on the story, consider interviewing:
- Floral Design coordinator Christy Tobola
- Students who designed or constructed the arrangement
- Students preparing fair or competition entries
- Students who placed or earned recognition
- Students pursuing or earning floral certifications
- Students responsible for ordering, pricing, or preparing materials
- Teachers or organizations receiving an arrangement
- Organizers of the school event where the work will be displayed
- Judges or competition officials, when appropriate
- Students interested in floral or event-design careers
Do not interview only Mrs. Tobola or the competition winner. Include the students whose design decisions, preparation, craftsmanship, and problem-solving explain how the finished work was created.
What You Need to Collect
Before writing or producing the story, collect:
- Correctly spelled names and grade levels
- Each student’s role in the project
- The official event, competition, or project name
- The date, time, and location
- The arrangement’s purpose and intended recipient
- The type of arrangement created
- Important flowers, greenery, tools, and materials used
- Design requirements, time limits, and budget information
- Details about planning, construction, and revisions
- Challenges encountered and solutions developed
- Official placements, awards, or certification results
- Useful quotes from Mrs. Tobola and participating students
- Photographs or video of the design process
- A clear image of the completed arrangement
- Identification of everyone shown in photographs
- Information about what happens next
- The name of the person who confirmed the information
Before You Leave
Ask yourself:
- Do I have every name spelled correctly?
- Do I know each student’s grade level and role?
- Did I confirm the arrangement’s purpose?
- Do I know whether the design is planned, in progress, or completed?
- Did I confirm where and when it will be displayed, delivered, or judged?
- Can I explain the important design choices?
- Do I know which flowers, materials, and techniques were used?
- Did I ask about time, cost, or material limitations?
- Did I find out what changed from the original plan?
- Did I distinguish among participation, placement, advancement, and certification?
- Are all competition and certification results official?
- Did I interview Mrs. Tobola and the students who completed the work?
- Do I have meaningful quotes about creativity, craftsmanship, or problem-solving?
- Did I photograph both the process and finished arrangement?
- Did I receive permission before touching, moving, or photographing the work?
- Do I know what happens next?