Highest Honors Ceremony

Our school district holds a special Highest Honors Ceremony before graduation to celebrate all of the seniors completing high school with a grade point average above 4.0. It's a big deal. The superintendent, school board, and principals of all five high schools conduct the ceremony. Each graduate is introduced with where they will be going to college, what their major will be, and what career they hope to have. They receive the honor cords they'll wear at their graduations. It's really inspiring and a great way to acknowledge the hard work that goes into earning four years of perfect grades in advanced classes. 

Highest Honors Ceremony (affiliate link)

There were 190 students at the Highest Honors Ceremony for the Class of 2024. By now, they are 2/3 of the way through their freshman year of college. I sincerely hope they are all thriving and continuing to be as successful as they were in high school.  

50 State Quarters Program - Fun Facts

Between finishing a coloring page for each of the 50 state quarters and then grading the design of each quarter, I learned a lot about the 50 State Quarters Program. I found out about inspiration, innovations, and clever design decisions, as well as errors, omissions, and seriously disgruntled artists. Read on for the most interesting of the fun facts I discovered. 

Fun Facts About the 50 State Quarters Program

• Each of the 50 state quarters was minted for only 10 weeks.

• More than 34 billion coins were minted during the 50 State Quarters Program, but the amount produced for each state varied greatly. Virginia had the greatest number of quarters produced (1.59 billion) and Oklahoma had the fewest (416.6 million). 

• The inspiration for the 50 State Quarters Program came from Canada. Canada issued commemorative quarters featuring each of the 12 provinces and territories in 1992 to honor their 125th anniversary.

• The Onion produced two articles spoofing the 50 State Quarters Program: Collecting All 50 State Quarters Senior's Only Reason To Remain Alive and U.S. Mint Gears Up To Issue Commemorative County Pennies. 

• The Alabama state quarter is the first US coin featuring Braille writing.

• The Hawaii state quarter honors King Kamehameha, making it the first circulating US coin to feature royalty. 

• New Jersey's quarter was the first coin in history to show George Washington on both the front and the back.

• Kermit the Frog was named the Spokesfrog for the 50 State Quarters Program. He appeared in commercials and print ads.  

• The most significant minting errors in the state quarter series include the Wisconsin "Extra Leaf" quarters. There are two versions of the mistake: one with a "low leaf" and one with a "high leaf" next to the cornstalk.   

• The state outline on the Georgia quarter leaves out Dade County, in the northwestern part of the state. It wasn't a minting error, but rather a design problem. While that was presumably an accident, in 1860 the county seceded from both the US and the state of Georgia. That was never legally recognized and the county "rejoined" the state and the nation in 1945. Indiana's outline is also missing part of its northwestern corner. 

• On Tennessee's state quarter, there are only five strings on the 6-string guitar (which shows 6 tuning pegs). 

• The design contest winner for Missouri, artist Paul Jackson, claimed that the Mint needlessly "dumbed down" his design because they claimed, falsely, that it was "uncoinable." There's a lot to this story: read all about Quartergate. Then read about other artists who felt they were not given the credit they deserved for their designs.

• The 50 State Quarters Program was hugely successful. Roughly half the population collected state quarters, making it the most successful numismatic program in US history. The government has made approximately $3 billion from collectors taking coins out of circulation. 

The 50 State Quarters Program ended in 2008, but that was not the end to commemorative quarters. Three additional programs have led to quarters honoring US territories, national parks and forests, and American women. These programs include: 

• District of Columbia & U.S. Territories Quarters (2009)
• America the Beautiful Quarters (2010-2021)
• American Women Quarters (2022-2025)

There are some gorgeous designs. I have no plans to color them all, but I may end up coloring a few of my favorite quarters in the future, after I've forgotten how much work it was coloring the 50 I did!

Spuddy Buddy Idaho Potato Craft

The mascot of the Idaho Potato Commission is a potato named Spuddy Buddy. He was born in 1983 as Potato Buddy, dressed in a bandana and cowboy hat, and appeared in ads to promote Idaho potatoes. Ten years later, he got a big makeover, giving him his current look. Spuddy Buddy became known nationally after a 1996 appearance at the Today Show window and can now be seen in ads and in person at football games, with the Big Idaho Potato Truck, and many other places. He’s such an icon that I thought it would be fun to turn him into a craft. Affilliate links below. 

 

Spuddy Buddy Idaho Potato Craft

Materials: 

• cardstock or construction paper (tan, brown, white, red)
• scissors
• pens (black, yellow, brown)
• craft glue

Steps: 

Begin by cutting out all the pieces you will need: 

• one tan rectangle, with two corners rounded (body)
• one large red rectangle, the same width as the tan rectangle (shirt)
• two thin red rectangles (shirt sleeves)
• two thin white rectangles (trim on shirt)
• two long brown rectangles (legs)
• two brown gloves
• two small white rectangles (trim for sleeves)
• one white rectangle (design on shirt)
• two white shoes 
• two white eyes (not pictured below)

Use a black pen to draw pupils on the eyes and to color the black portion of the shoes. Then use a brown pen to draw an outline of Idaho on the white rectangle. Color outside the outline with brown and inside the outline with yellow. Then write IDAHO in brown. 

Glue everything in place. Then use the black pen to draw eyebrows, a nose, and a smile.

I really enjoyed making Spuddy Buddy!

Zen Doodle Name Art

I'm calling this Zen Doodle Name Art. It was really fun to make. Affiliate links below.  

Zen Doodle Name Art

Materials:

• drawing paper
• ink pads
• blending brushes
• repositionable letter stickers
• black fineliner

Steps: 

Use the letter stickers to spell your name on a piece of paper. The ones I put in the supply list above are repositionable, so you'll be able to remove them later. If you use something else, like I did, stick them to your pant leg a few times to remove some of the adhesive before putting them on the paper. Otherwise you risk tearing the paper when you remove them. 

Use the blending brushes to cover all of the exposed paper with color. I used three colors, but you can obviously do whatever you want. 

Carefully remove the stickers. 

Now fill in each letter with a different pattern. 

That's all there is to it! I love projects like this for groups, because the finished designs will look completely different from one another. Enjoy!

Tournament of Champions VI

We did something really cool back in September 2024. We were in the audience for Tournament of Champions VI. 

Tournament of Champions VI (affiliate link)

This was the fourth time that Steve and I were able to participate in filming a TV show. We were volunteers on Mythbusters in 2012 and 2013 and Restaurant Impossible in 2021 and we absolutely loved each experience. (Jeopardy in January 2025 was #5!) Tournament of Champions films in Windsor, about an hour from where we live. When I saw the call for audience members, I jumped on it immediately. We love the show and are rabid Food Network fans. And since Trevor had turned 18 and college hadn't started up yet, he was able to join us! 

We weren't allowed to take any pictures anywhere on set, so I was thrilled when Guy Fieri took a selfie with the audience and air-dropped it to all of us. I was expecting to have to do screen captures of the episode itself in order to get any photos to scrapbook. This was so much better! 

We were in the audience for two battles, with very strict instructions not to say anything until the episode aired. So from September 11 to March 2, we kept our mouths shut. It was so exciting when "our" episode was on and we were finally able to talk about our experience. And there was no missing us in the audience - there was one camera that stayed on the audience the whole time, so I'd guessed that we'd appear on screen. Quite a few times, as it turned out!

As I said, we watched two battles. The first was the #2 seed Adam Sobel versus the #7 seed Adriana Urbina. The randomizer gave them little neck clams as the protein, broccolini for produce, a blow torch for the equipment, smashed for the style, and black tea for the wildcard ingredient. Adam Sobel was the winner. The second battle pitted #1 seed Antonia Lofaso against #8 seed Maria Mazon. The randomizer delivered chicken breasts, leeks, a donut pan, herbaceous as the style, and yellow mustard. Antonia Lofaso won that battle. Commentators were Justin Warner, as expected, and Tiffani Faison, who was new to the job. The previous commentator, Simon Majumdar, was there; but it wasn't until the episode aired that we learned  that his new job is to interview the judges after each round. The judges were Wolfgang Puck, Alex Guarnaschelli, and Maneet Chauhan. 

We had a great time watching the battles and seeing everything that goes on behind-the-scenes. There's so much that goes into making a TV show go smoothly. It was great fun seeing chefs that we admire and have watched for so many years. Guy is just as much of a character in person as he appears on TV, if not more. Whenever the cameras stopped rolling, he was interacting with the audience, telling us jokes and anecdotes. All in all, it was a fantastic experience.

Quirky Collages to Color: Carousel Horse

I wanted to give the Ohuhu Halawa colored pencils another go, so I used them to color another super fun image from Quirky Collages to Color. This time, I colored a carousel horse, made up of all sorts of toys and games and other miscellaneous stuff. 

How many of the 60 hidden items can you spot? I'm the one who colored it and some of them are still hard for me to find!

 

Once again, I enjoyed working with the Ohuhu colored pencils. They hold a nice sharp point, which is great for coloring the tiny spaces in this collage. The color selection is great. Because they are oil-based, they don't blend as easily as the wax-based Prismacolors I usually use, but that wasn't really an issue with this image. In the future, I can see myself using both sets of colored pencils in order to take advantage of the best features of each. 

The Best and Worst of the 50 State Quarters, Part 5

This is the fifth (and final) post rating the designs of each of the 50 state quarters. I suggest starting with the first post, which gives the background and explains my grading criteria. This time I'm looking at the 5 quarters from Year 9 (2007) and Year 10 (2008). 

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2007 - Year 9 of the 50 State Quarters Program

Montana is the third state to feature a bison (this time, a skull). The skull hangs over the Montana landscape and the state nickname. I’m not a fan. A skull, the symbol of death? That seems as inviting to newcomers as the flags of Alabama and Florida. Aesthetics 1.5, representation 2, education 0.5, for a total of 4. 

Washington’s quarter shows a salmon breaching in front of Mount Rainier. It also includes the state nickname. It’s an interesting and dynamic design. Aesthetics 4, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 8.5. 

Idaho’s quarter features a peregrine falcon, an outline of the state with the capital city marked with a star, and the state motto (‘May it be Forever’). Not only is the peregrine falcon the state raptor, but it is a symbol of one of the most successful conservation efforts of all time. Visit the World Center of Birds of Prey to see their work in action! While I appreciate the symbols they chose, the design itself is out of balance. I would have put a large Idaho on the left and a slightly smaller falcon on the right, facing into the state instead of looming over it. Aesthetics 2.5, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 7. 

 

Wyoming’s quarter features a bucking horse and rider, along with the state nickname. This design is really plain. While most of the quarters have depth and detail in the images, Wyoming’s has a silhouette. It would be much more interesting and vibrant if the details were in place. I’d also like to see the state flower or something similar in the space in the bottom right. Aesthetics 1.5, representation 2.5, education 1, for a total of 5.  

Utah’s quarter features two trains moving toward the golden spike that linked the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads, with the mountains in the background. I love the ‘Crossroads of the West’ theme and the level of detail in this quarter is fantastic. Aesthetics 5, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 9.5. 

My winner for the penultimate year was Utah, followed by Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, and then Montana. On to the final year!

2008 - Year 10 of the 50 State Quarters Program

Oklahoma's quarter features the state bird (Scissortail Flycatcher) flying over the state wildflower (the Indian Blanket). This is a really nice design and highlights the most distinctive feature of the bird. I like the balance and the scale. Aesthetics 5, representation 4.5, education 1, for a total of 9.5. 

New Mexico’s quarter features the Zia sun symbol over a topographical outline of the state. The state nickname is squeezed into the bottom left. The balance on this quarter is terrible. There are so many ways you could improve this design by shifting things around to give each element its own space. Aesthetics 1, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 5.5.

Arizona's quarter portrays two different landscapes found in the state: the Grand Canyon and the Sonoran desert, home of the Saguaro cactus. The two scenes are divided by a banner containing the state nickname. I love this quarter. It is a beautiful, thoughtful design. It represents the state perfectly. Aesthetics 5, representation 4, education 1, for a total of 10. 

Alaska's quarter features a grizzly bear catching salmon. The design also includes the North Star and the inscription 'The Great Land.' This is the translation of the Aleut name for Alaska. This is another gorgeous quarter that can't be improved. Aesthetics 5, representation 4, education 1, for a total of 10. 

Hawaii’s quarter features King Kamehameha I gesturing toward the eight major Hawaiian Islands. It also includes the state motto, which translates to 'The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness.' I'm not crazy about this quarter. While I appreciate including an element of Hawaii's history, putting a representative of an overthrown monarchy on a coin is a strange choice. Also, Hawaii is arguably the most beautiful state and none of that beauty is on this quarter. Aesthetics 2.5, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 7. 

My favorite quarters from the final year are Arizona and Alaska, followed closely by Oklahoma. Next is Hawaii and then New Mexico. 

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I gave a perfect 10 to three quarters: Nevada (Year 8), Arizona (Year 10), and Alaska (Year 10). There were some standout quarters from the earlier years, like South Carolina (Year 2) and Tennessee (Year 4), but overall the quarters got better as the years went on. The highest average score was from Year 8. Of course, all of this is just my opinion. If you have other thoughts, please let me know in the comments.

I learned a lot more about the state quarters as I was researching them to put this series together. I'll be putting together a list of Fun Facts from the 50 State Quarters Program, so be looking for that soon.  

The Best and Worst of the 50 State Quarters, Part 4

This is my fourth post rating the designs of each of the 50 state quarters. I suggest starting with the first post, which gives the background and explains the criteria I'm using to for grading. This time I'm looking at the 5 quarters from Year 7 (2005) and Year 8 (2006). 

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2005 - Year 7 of the 50 State Quarters Program

California’s quarter features John Muir, Half Dome, and a California condor. It's impossible to sum up a state like California in a single quarter, but I think this was a good attempt. It's an attractive, well-balanced design. Aesthetics 4.5, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 9. 

 

The Minnesota quarter leans into their nickname, Land of 10,000 Lakes. The design includes fishermen, a loon (their state bird), and an outline of the state. Again, it's an attractive design that is well-balanced and represents the state well. Aesthetics 4.5, representation 4, education 1, for a total of 9.5.

Oregon's quarter features Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the United States. It's the only national park in Oregon, so it's a good choice for the quarter. But the beauty of Crater Lake is in its colors, which are obviously not on a minted coin. Aesthetics 3.5, representation 3, education 1, for a total of 7.5.

The Kansas quarter features the state animal (bison) and state flower (sunflower). I would have added taller sunflowers to better fill the space. (Fun fact: Sunflowers can grow up to 15 feet tall!) Aesthetics 3.5, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 8. 

The West Virginia quarter depicts New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. Just like with Oregon, I feel like it's a good choice to feature one of the state's most beautiful locations, but that a lot of the beauty is lost without color and at such a small scale. Aesthetics 3, representation 3, education 1, for a total of 7. 

After the somewhat disappointing designs of 2004, it's nice to see much better choices for 2005. My top quarter was Minnesota, followed by California, Kansas, Oregon, and West Virginia. 

2006 - Year 8 of the 50 State Quarters Program

The Nevada quarter includes wild mustangs, snow-capped mountains, sagebrush (the state flower), and the state nickname. I love this quarter. The design is interesting and attractive. It includes numerous features of Nevada. I wouldn't change a thing. Aesthetics 5, representation 4, education 1, total 10. 

Nebraska's quarter features Chimney Rock, with an ox-drawn covered wagon carrying pioneers. The quarter is well-designed and interesting. While numerous states fall along the Oregon Trail and could have used the covered wagon design, it is uniquely Nebraskan by including Chimney Rock. Aesthetics 4.5, representation 3.5, education 1, total 9. 

The Colorado quarter features the Rocky Mountains and the inscription “Colorful Colorado.” It's a nice enough design, but it's a questionable choice use a piece of artwork that is entirely silver to highlight how colorful your state is. I would have gone with the other nickname, the Centennial State. Aesthetics 4, representation 3, education 0.5, for a total of 7.5. 

North Dakota is the second state to feature bison. They are pictured in front of a sunset over the Badlands. This is another nice quarter. The design is interesting and well-balanced and represents the state well. Aesthetics 4.5, representation 4, education 0.5, for a total of 9. 

The South Dakota quarter has the state bird, a Chinese ring-necked pheasant, flying over Mount Rushmore, with heads of wheat acting as borders. Personally, when I think of South Dakota, I think of pronghorns and prairie dogs and ton bales first, but these are fine symbols of the state now. Aesthetics 4, representation 4, education 0.5, for an 8.5. 

My winner for this year's batch of quarters is Nevada, followed by Nebraska and North Dakota, then South Dakota and Colorado. These quarters have the highest average score so far. Tomorrow we'll see if either Year 9 or Year 10 does even better. 

The Best and the Worst of the 50 State Quarters, Part 3

This is my third post rating the designs of each of the 50 state quarters. I suggest starting with the first post, which gives the background and explains the criteria I'm using for grading. This time I'm looking at the 5 quarters from Year 5 (2003) and Year 6 (2004). 

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2003 - Year 5 of the 50 State Quarters Program

The Illinois quarter shows Abraham Lincoln within the outline of the state. In the backgrounnd, there is a farm scene on the left and the Chicago skyline on the right. There are 21 stars, signifying that Illinois is the 21st state. Overall, it's a nice quarter that represents different parts of the state well. I have two complaints: I don't like the font and spacing choices for the text. And I really don't like the addition of the century part of "21st State - Century." I get that we were barely (3 years) into the 21st century when the quarter came out and that they wanted to portray Illinois as a modern state with present-day importance, but it doesn't have any meaningful connection to being the 21st state. Aesthetics: 3, representation 4, education 1, for a total of 8. 

 

The Alabama quarter design features an image of Helen Keller (born in Tuscumbia, Alabama) with her name in English and in Braille (a super cool element) and a banner saying Spirit of Courage. The quarter also has a branch of Alabama's state tree, the long leaf pine, as well as a flower. The Mint says it's a magnolia, but other sources say it's the state flower, a camellia. That makes more sense. Aesthetics 3, representation 4, education 1, for a total of 8. 

Maine's quarter shows the Pemaquid Point Lighthouse and a sailing schooner. The design is nice enough, but doesn't wow me. Aesthetics 3, representation 3, education 1, for a total of 7. 

Missouri's quarter shows Lewis and Clark’s return to St. Louis on the Missouri River. The Gateway Arch is in the background, with “Corps of Discovery 1804-2004” printed above it. I don't love this design; neither does the man who won the contest that inspired the design. I've been to the Gateway Arch and it doesn't look much like that, nor does it cross the (Mississippi, not Missouri) River. It's strange the way the trees are bending inward on both sides of the river. I realize the quarter isn't meant to be a factual depiction, but it could have been a lot better. Aesthetics 2.5, representation 2, education 1, for a total of 5.5. 

The Arkansas quarter has rice stalks, a diamond and a mallard flying above a lake. Arkansas is the nation’s #1 rice producer and the only state where you can find diamonds, but I’m not sure what the mallard is doing there, unless it's to represent the duck hunting culture. It’s not the state bird, but there is a proposal (now, in 2025) to make it the state duck. Aesthetics 4, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 8.5.

That makes Arkansas my top design for 2003. The runners-up are Illinois and Alabama, followed by Maine and then Missouri. 

2004 - Year 6 of the 50 State Quarters Program

Michigan’s quarter has an outline of the state and the five Great Lakes. This would be a fine design if it represented the Great Lakes, but I don’t think it honors Michigan. Something about Motown and the car industry and cereal would better represent the state. Aesthetics 2, representation 1.5, education 0.5, for a total of 4. 

The Florida quarter design shows a 16th-century Spanish galleon, a space shuttle, and land with palm trees. Together, these items show Florida as the “Gateway to Discovery.” It’s a good theme, but I really don’t like the design. Aesthetics 1, representation 3, education 1, for a total of 5. 

Texas’ quarter has a star over the state’s outline and the inscription, “The Lone Star State,” with rope symbolizing the state’s cowboy history around the edges. It’s simple... too simple. That empty space on the left could hold another symbol - a horseshoe or the state flower, for example. Aesthetics 2, representation 2.5, education 0.5, for a total of 5.

Iowa’s quarter is based on Grant Wood’s painting called Arbor Day and features a one-room schoolhouse with a teacher and students planting a tree. I get the Grant Wood / Iowa connection, but a one-room schoolhouse that looks like this could be found in most states. I tried to find out the meaning behind “Foundation in Education” and apparently it’s because Iowa had schools in place before becoming a state. I don’t know if that’s unique to Iowa. Aesthetics 2, representation 2, education 0.5, for a total of 5. 

Wisconsin leans into their agriculture with a quarter featuring a cow, cheese and corn, as well as the state motto, “Forward.” I like that America’s Dairyland emphasizes the importance of milk and cheese, but I would have replaced the cow with a bottle of milk, then added one or two more of their most important agricultural products. Wisconsin is the #1 producer of cranberries and string beans; those would make nice additions, as would brats. Or a kringle! Aesthetics 2.5, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 7.

My top quarter from this batch is Wisconsin, followed by Texas and Florida, then Iowa and Michigan. This group has the lowest average score of the 6 years of quarters I've graded so far. Tomorrow I'll look at how Year 7 and Year 8 did. 

The Best and Worst of the 50 State Quarters, Part 2

This is my second post rating the designs of each of the state quarters. I suggest starting with the first post, which gives the background and explains my grading criteria. Today we're looking at the 5 quarters from Year 3 (2001) and Year 4 (2002). 

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2001 - Year 3 of the 50 State Quarters Program

The New York quarter features the iconic Statue of Liberty, an outline of the state, 11 stars to signify that New York is the 11th state, and the inscription 'Gateway to Freedom.' Overall, I like this quarter. I love that they etched a line marking the Erie Canal and Hudson River into the map. I personally would have moved the star from the lower right that's almost touching Long Island over to the western part of the state to make it a bit more balanced. I also would have scooted Lady Liberty down just a hair so that her torch is not setting the N or E on fire. Aesthetics 3.5, representation 3, education 1, for a total of 7.5. 

North Carolina's quarter is based on the famous 1903 photograph of the Wright brothers' first flight in Kitty Hawk, NC. The design isn't bad, but it's a bit one-note, if that makes sense. Aesthetics 2.5, representation 2.5, education 1, for a total of 6.0. 

Rhode Island is the Ocean State, so it's appropriate that the quarter shows a sailboat in Narragansett Bay with the Pell Bridge in the background. It's a nice design. Aesthetics 4, representation 3, education 0.5 for a total of 8. 

Maple syrup is everywhere in Vermont, so it's not a surprise that maple sap appears on the quarter. That's Camel's Hump Mountain in the background. The quarter also has the state motto. Aesthetics 3.5, representation 3.5, and education 1, for a total of 8.5. 

The Kentucky quarter has a horse and Federal Hill, aka “My Old Kentucky Home.” I suppose those are two appropriate symbols for the state, but the design is a bit dull. It's a small detail, but I don't like that the horse is facing outward - it leads my eye off the coin and makes me wonder what he's looking at. Aesthetics 2.5, representation 2.5, education 1, for a total of 6. 

My winner in this batch is Vermont. Second place goes to Rhode Island and New York, followed by Kentucky and North Carolina. 

2002 - Year 4 of the 50 State Quarters Program

The Tennessee quarter honors the important contributions the state made to the musical heritage of the US. There are three stars to represent the three regions of Tennessee and three instruments to celebrate each region's distinct musical style. I love this quarter. No notes. Aesthetics 5, representation 4, education 0.5, for a 9.5. 

Ohio's quarter features the Wright Flyer and an astronaut over an outline of the state. These represent the pioneers of aviation who were born in Ohio, including Orville Wright (brother Wilbur was born in Indiana) and astronauts John Glenn and Neil Armstrong. The previous year, North Carolina's quarter came out with a Wright Flyer on it; apparently the two states have a (friendly?) rivalry about who lays claim to being "First in Flight" vs. "Birthplace of Aviation Pioneers." Personally, I wouldn't want to be the second state to put the same image on the quarter, although this is the more attractive of the two. Plus, it includes other elements besides just the plane. Aesthetics 3, representation 3, education 1, for a total of 7. 

The Louisiana quarter has a pelican (the state bird), a trumpet with musical notes, and the outline of the Louisiana Purchase territory with the inscription “Louisiana Purchase.” It's a nice quarter. Aesthetics 4.5, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 9.

The Indiana quarter features a race car, an outline of the state, the state motto “Crossroads of America,” and 19 stars marking its status as the 19th state. I like how dynamic it feels. Aesthetics 4, representation 3.5, education 1, for a total of 8.5. 

The Mississippi quarter features the state flower and its nickname, the Magnolia State. The design looks crowded; I would completely eliminate one of the two flowers and a bunch of leaves to clear out space to showcase an additional state symbol. Aesthetics 2.5, representation 2, education 0.5, for a total of 5. 

My winner from Year 4 is Tennessee, followed closely by Louisiana and then Indiana. Next is Ohio and then Mississippi. 

Next up: Year 5 and Year 6. By the time those states made their designs, they had 20+ previous examples to help guide their decisions. Did it help? I'll find out in the next post.