A prize of $10,500 will be awarded to the high school winner of the Rock Wood Fired Pizza and Spirits 2013 Schools of the Rock Battle of the Bands.

Public voting began New Years Day and will continue until Jan. 18, when the Top 10 bands with the most votes will go on to the celebrity judge panel. Voting will take place at www.957kjr.com. People can vote for one school, once a day, said Jackie Mendez, marketing director for The Rock.

The competition started as a way to give back to the community.

Music programs often are the first to be cut from schools, Mendez said. The competition allows The Rock to give back and “inspire the art of classic rock in younger generations,” according to its website.

“Generally, we have about 30 to 40 schools participate,” Mendez said. “This year we have 23 schools.”

This year, all three high schools from the Puyallup School District — Puyallup, Rogers and Emerald Ridge — will compete. It’s Emerald Ridge’s first year.

Puyallup has been the big winner twice, the only school to accomplish this feat since the competition began in 2007.

“Puyallup High School has won a total of $22,000 in the last three years,” Puyallup High band director Eric Ryan wrote in an email.

This is the first year the competition has been extended to Oregon and Colorado schools, as well as Washington schools. High schools are required to be within 50 miles from one of The Rocks locations, Mendez said.

Rogers placed fourth last year and has placed in the top six since the competition started, the school’s band director, Bruce Leonardy, wrote in an email.

Ultimately, the competition is an audio contest, but schools must submit either a slideshow or a video to accompany their music, Leonardy said.

The songs must be classic rock, Mendez said, to follow The Rock Wood Fired Pizza and Spirits theme, as well as its sponsor, the Bob Rivers Show and 95.7 KJR-FM.

Once the celebrity judges are elected, the visual will be dropped from the competition and judged completely on audio, based on musicality and song choice.

The competition originally was fully funded by The Rock and its sponsors. “Battle of the Bands is currently pending a 501(c)(3) delegation and will be run as a non-profit, according to its website.

Prizes are funded by The Rock and the community, either through www.therocksbotb.com or Round Up Your Change for Charity on restaurant receipts. The donations either go to Battle of the Bands or the Red Cross.

“We’re glad to be able to give back,” Mendez said.

Battle of the Bands

The Top 10 awards will be the following:

First: $10,500

Second: $5,000

Third: $2,500

Fourth: $1,500

Fifth: $1,000

Sixth: $1,000

Seventh: $1,000

Eighth: $1,000

Ninth: Pizza party (value of $750)

Tenth: Pizza party (value of $750)

Other awards include:

Division 2 and 3 schools with the most votes: $500 each

Washington Best Video winner: Sponsored by KJR-Seattle, $1,500

For more information, visit www.therocksbotb.com.

Samantha Shockley is a freelance reporter for the Herald.