OFFICIAL RULES – California Golden Owl Award<sup>®</sup> Contest

These are the Official Rules of the California Golden Owl Award Contest (“Contest”). The Contest is co-sponsored by the California FFA, 13020 West Stockton Blvd, Galt, California 95632; the California Farm Bureau® Federation, 2600 River Plaza Drive, Sacramento, CA 95833; and Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company (“Sponsors”), One Nationwide Plaza, Columbus, Ohio 43215.

NO PURCHASE IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.

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Eligibility

Nominees must be California-licensed educators currently teaching agricultural education courses at the secondary (middle/high school) level. No purchase is necessary.

Nominations can be submitted by the general public, current or former students, parents, fellow educators, school administrators and community members.

TEACHERS MAY NOT SELF-NOMINATE.

2019-2020 GRAND PRIZE WINNERS ARE EXCLUDED FROM THIS YEAR’S CONTEST. NOMINATIONS FOR THESE TEACHERS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

Employees and agents of Nationwide, its affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising and promotion agencies, and any entity involved in the development, production, implementation, administration or fulfillment of the Contest (all of the foregoing, together with Nationwide, collectively referred to as "Promotion Entities") and their immediate family members and/or those living in the same household of such persons, whether related or not, are not eligible to enter the Contest.

How to enter

The Nomination period begins August 1, 2020 and ends December 31, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. PST (“Nomination Period”).

To enter, provide your and the ag teacher’s contact information, including an essay (250 words or less) describing how the teacher’s dedication to agriculture education, and commitment and impact on today’s youth make the teacher the best in the state.

Nominations can be completed online at www.goldenowlaward.com or mailed or emailed via the downloadable nomination form.

Entry constitutes consent to participate in the Contest and for Nationwide to obtain, use, and transfer the entrant’s name, address and other details for Contest administration purposes. Nationwide will not be responsible for lost, incomplete, illegible, late, misdirected, stolen, or mutilated entries; technical or mechanical malfunctions; errors in the Official Rules, in any related ads or materials; or processing error. Nationwide can void the entry of any Entrant who it believes has attempted to tamper with or impair Contest administration, security, fairness, or proper play.

Honoree Determination

HONOREE DETERMINATION

Each of the six (6) regions that make up the California Association FFA shall establish a committee to evaluate nominations received. Each regional committee shall meet and select one (1) sectional winner from each section in their region. From these sectional winners, each regional committee shall select one (1) regional Honoree.

Nominations will be judged based on the following criteria:

Teacher’s dedication to agriculture education
Teacher’s commitment to his/her student(s)
Teacher’s impact on his/her student(s)

In the event of a tie, the teacher receiving the highest number of nominations shall be selected as regional Honoree, as determined by the selection committee.

The six (6) regional Honorees will be notified no later than February 28, 2021.

Grand Prize Winner Determination

During the 2021 California FFA State Conference, a delegate committee will interview the regional Honorees, and select and announce the California Agricultural Educator of the Year.

If a Prize winner is not eligible to win, or if Nationwide is unable to contact the winner after a reasonable effort, the prize will be forfeited, and an alternate winner may be selected. Odds of winning depend on number of eligible entries received.

REGIONAL HONOREES MUST BE PRESENT AT THE CALIFORNIA FFA STATE CONFERENCE FOR A CHANCE TO WIN.

SPONSORS ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR TRAVEL-RELATED EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH PRIZE ACCEPTANCE.

Prizes

Prizes will be awarded as follows:

One (1) Grand Prize Winner: Trophy and $3,000 cash prize
Six (6) Regional Honorees: Plaque and $500 cash prize to honoree
Thirty (30) Sectional Winners: Plaque to teacher, sponsored by the California Association FFA
All nominees: Paper certificate

Prizes are non-transferable, and no substitution will be made except as provided herein at the Sponsors’ sole discretion. Sponsors reserve the right to substitute a prize for one of equal or greater value if the designated prize should become unavailable for any reason. Winners are responsible for all taxes and fees associated with prize receipt and/or use.

If requested, winners must execute and return an Affidavit of Eligibility, Liability Release and (where legal) Publicity Release within three days of notification. Failure to do so may result in disqualification, forfeiture, or award to alternate winner.

General rules

The Contest is governed by and subject to the laws of the United States and the state of Ohio.

All federal, state and local laws and regulations apply. Void where prohibited by law. Prize Winners may receive an IRS 1099 form for the value of their prizes. By participating in the Contest and/or accepting any prize, Entrants grant the Promotion Entities permission to use their name, likenesses, and image in connection with the Contest for purposes of advertising, publicity and promotion purposes, without further compensation to the entrant, unless prohibited by law. Entrants agree to be bound by the Official Rules and the decisions of the judges, which are final and binding on all matters relating to the Contest. The Promotion Entities are not responsible for any typographical or other errors in the printing of the offer, administration of the Contest or the announcement of the prizes, or for lost, late, misdirected, damaged, incomplete or illegal entries.

The Promotion Entities reserve the right at their sole discretion to disqualify any Entrant found to be (a) tampering or attempting to tamper with the entry process or (b) violating the Official Rules.

By participating in the Contest and/or accepting any prize, Entrants grant Nationwide permission to use their name, likenesses, and image in connection with the Contest for purposes of advertising, publicity and promotion purposes, without further compensation to the entrant, unless prohibited by law.

DISPUTES/GOVERNING LAW

Except where prohibited, as a condition of participating in this Contest, Entrant agrees that any and all disputes that cannot be resolved between the parties, and all claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Contest, or any prize awarded, or the determination of winner shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action. Further, in any such dispute, under no circumstances will Entrant be permitted to obtain awards for, and hereby waives all rights to claim punitive, incidental or consequential damages, or any other damages, including attorneys' fees, and Entrant further waives all rights to have damages multiplied or increased.

All issues and questions rights and obligations of Entrant in connection with this Contest shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of Ohio, without giving effect to the conflict of laws rules thereof.

PRIVACY

By entering the Contest, you agree to Nationwide’s use of your personal information, as described in the Nationwide Privacy Policy, located at https://www.nationwide.com/personal/privacy-security/. Your information will be shared for marketing purposes by the Nationwide family of companies. By entering the Contest, you also agree to the terms and conditions described in the California Farm Bureau Privacy Policy, located at https://www.cfbf.com/legal-notice/.

WINNER LIST

For a list of Prize winners, send a stamped, self-addressed envelope to: Golden Owl Award Request, Nationwide, Steve Ferreira, 1100 Locust St., MC D1-3W-3055, Des Moines, Iowa 50391.

The Farm Bureau, FB and the FB National logo are trademarks of the American Farm Bureau Federation and are used with permission under license by Nationwide. FFA emblem is a service mark of the National FFA Organization and is used with permission. All rights reserved.