NIU will be hosting the 30th annual Northern Illinois Industrial Education Exhibit this Friday and Saturday.

NIU will display work by industrial arts students from junior and senior high schools in 22 northern Illinois counties, said Gary Lintereur, exhibit chairman and associate professor of technology at NIU.

The exhibit will be held in the Duke Ellington Ballroom in the Holmes Student Center. Projects will be judged Friday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. by teachers from public schools and by NIU industry and technology department students and professors, he said.

“Prizes are given as seen fit; there is no certain number of prizes given,” Lintereur said. Works judged outstanding will receive a blue ribbon, superior a red ribbon and worthy of honorable mention a white ribbon, he said. “Last year the event was very successful, with over 700 awards given,” he said.

The exhibit includes projects in furniture, mechanical drafting, architectural and general drawings, model building, machine tool design, graphic arts and electronics, Lintereur said.

The show will be open to the public from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday, and from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday. The majority of the people who attend the exhibit are the artists themselves and their parents, Lintereur said. “Many curious students walking by will take a look around. They usually are pretty impressed with what the high school students can do,” he said.

The exhibit also is a chance for the high school students to see NIU. “Most of the students bring their parents, so we have students from Epsilon Pi Tau professional society available to give tours as requested,” Lintereur said. EPT is co-sponsoring the event with NIU’s technology department.