The tile decorating contest was full of colorful designs as teams grabbed paintbrushes, pencils and sponges to help decorate their ceiling tiles while dancing to the music.

Eagle Entertainment hosted the tile decorating contest on Oct. 27, which took place in PUB 204. This event was overseen by Mike Cardenas, Eagle Entertainment chair.

According to Stacey Reece, the director of SAIL, the tile decorating contest is part of the team challenge for Homecoming Week 2014. Reece said teams entered the contest to decorate new ceiling tiles, representing their Eagle pride.

According to Reece, this contest is a spinoff of the old window decorating competition.

“We changed the format because often the weather would interfere with the painting of windows,” Reece said in an email. “We also wanted to create artwork that could last and be used throughout the year.”

Cardenas said this event is pretty relaxed when it comes to the rules and guidelines that allow students to express their artistic thoughts and feelings for Eastern.

“The rules are pretty much to show your Eastern pride and try to incorporate your team. Some are from the [residence] halls, some are from sororities and fraternities, some are from clubs and organizations and I think there is actually one team that is just a group of friends that decided to do it this year,” said Cardenas.

Freshman Laura Holman and junior Erin Locke were part of the snyamncut Hall team. Holman said she enjoyed the contest because of the opportunity to be artistic.

“I like it because it’s another way to get to know more people in your dorm or in your organization that you’re with, and you get to be creative with it, which is really cool,” said Holman.

Locke and Holman designed their tile around the meaning of the word snyamncut. According to Holman, snyamncut is a Native-American word meaning “gathering place.”

Holman and Locke painted the word “synamncut” on their tile and drew the “S” so that it flowed into a river; the river flowed into handprints that surround the Eastern Eagle. Holman said this design incorporates Eastern as well as their residence hall.

“This is my first time ever doing this, but so far it’s fun,” said Locke.

Unlike Locke and Holman on the synamncut team, the EWU Competition Dance Team did not collaborate on their tile. According to the team’s head captain, Hope Morrow, the team decided that one member would paint the tile because she was good at painting and the rest of the team would offer their unartistic moral support.

“The judges are between Eagle Entertainment, ASEWU and SAIL offices. The top three tiles will be hung in the ASEWU office. The winners will be announced at the homecoming game,” said Cardenas.

The contest lasted about two hours; teams were standing, sitting and dancing as they painted their tiles to represent their Eastern pride.

“Well if this ceiling tile is going to hang up in the building for like a thousand years, it is pretty legit. It’s definitely our favorite. It’s about leaving a legacy, right?” said Morrow.