Students or teams of students create designs, images and writings which will be submitted to the competition and receive feedback from a panel of distinguished jurors.

The top 5 entrants, along with the jurors and guest speakers convene to discuss the designs and related topics at an opening exhibition and colloquium at UNC Charlotte (Phase 2).  More exhibitions and colloquia featuring guest scholars will visit a number of universities, museums, and other cultural centers to further the discussion of American slavery (phase 3).

Designs, writings, comments by jurors, and images from the exhibition will be published to continue the discourse on American Slavery.