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For the second time in three years, Zariel Williams is the Cedar Hill ISD Christmas Card Contest Winner.

“I was really surprised to win it again,” Williams said. “A lot of my classmates have been doing digital art. I expected one of them to win. I was really excited when I learned that I won. I was jumping up and down.”

Williams, who won the contest as a sophomore in 2023, submitted three entries, as assigned by CHHS art teachers. 

The winning entry was inspired by “The Polar Express” – something that Williams enjoyed watching at the old Zula B. Wylie Library during her elementary years.

The other entries she submitted were a depiction of Christmas cookies, and a truck driving through wintry weather.

In 2023, her winning entry was a mother and daughter sitting next to a Christmas tree.

Cedar Hill High School freshman Gabrielle Allen placed second, followed by High Pointe Elementary fourth grader Emersyn Martin and Collegiate Academy sixth grader Kinsleigh Walker.

Williams, 17, currently takes courses in Advanced Placement Art (where she’s working on three-dimensional art and the theme of how food and mythology tie into various cultures), Art III (Sculpture) and Art IV Honors.

Last year, she won an award at the Visual Arts Scholastic Event (VASE) competition.

“Watching her grow from a freshman until now has been pretty remarkable,” CHHS Art Department Chair Danielle Grays-Johnson said. “She’s very creative and a really good kid. We all really believe in her.”

Williams plans to attend Dallas College next year, before transferring to a four-year school, possibly the University of North Texas.

“I want to do something art-related such as Interior Design, Graphic Design or Architecture,” Williams said. “I will major in one of them and minor in the other.”

Williams, who is also the layout editor for the CHHS Yearbook, began attending CHISD at Plummer Elementary and returned to the District as a CHHS freshman three years ago.