LANSING — Sen. John Proos has announced that the popular Southwest Michigan Spirit Tournament is back.

“This spirit tournament is designed to foster creativity by giving students and alumni an avenue to showcase their school spirit and tell everyone what makes their school great,” said Proos, R-St. Joseph. “School spirit encompasses a wide range of school activities, such as band, drama, robotics, athletics and art, and no one has more school spirit than Southwest Michigan.

“The response to this competition during its first three years was phenomenal. Fans of area schools submitted thousands of photos and videos that reached tens of thousands of people who cast hundreds of thousands of votes.”

The first round of the 2017 competition begins on Monday, March 20, at noon and will go through noon on Friday, March 24. The entire competition will span five weeks, ending at noon on Friday, April 21.

The champion will receive a special tribute from the governor and area legislators commending their school and will house an engraved trophy until the following year. Currently, the trophy is held by the Marcellus Wildcats.

“Like in the NCAA basketball tournament, schools will compete in a single-elimination bracket contest,” Proos said. “Those with the most points will move on to the next round each week. There are several ways to earn points for your school, such as voting in polls or submitting unique photos about your school.”

The 31 high schools in the tournament have been divided into four brackets that are named for features that characterize southwest Michigan. School matchups were chosen at random.

For the bracket, complete rules and information, visit the Spirit Tournament page on Proos’ Senate website at SenatorJohnProos.com.

Visitors to the John Proos Supporters Page on Facebook can also upload photos and earn bonus points when others “like” the photo. Another way to earn points is to follow Sen. John Proos on Twitter and send a tweet to @JohnMProos that includes the school name and the hashtag #SWMISpirit.

Fans can also earn 10 points for sharing Proos’ posts about the contest on Facebook or retweeting his tournament-related tweets.