In planning for the 8th annual Martin Luther King, Jr. (MLK) Celebration, the Office for Diversity and Inclusion in partnership with the Montgomery County-Radford City-Floyd County branch of the NAACP will sponsor a poster and essay contest for local schools. Students in grades K-12 within Montgomery, Floyd, Giles, Pulaski, and Roanoke counties, Radford and Roanoke cities, as well as independent/private schools and other schools in the surrounding area are encouraged to participate.
Commemorating the March on Washington, D.C.: Leading Social Change 50 Years Later.
The purpose of the Poster and Essay Contest is to challenge students to think critically about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy and develop goals that illustrate how they will help others within their communities. Dr. King and many other leaders in the American Civil Rights Movement served as role models for achieving equality through means of civility. Several notable historical figures such as Mohandas Gandhi, Henry David Thoreau, Ernest Hemmingway, John F. Kennedy, and Leo Tolstoy also shared in Dr. King’s philosophy of advocating methods for nonviolent social change.
In our current society, students from a variety of backgrounds are often faced with intimidating or seemingly inescapable conditions each day. Using Dr. King’s approach, how would you demonstrate nonviolence or civility if confronted with a similar type of situation? Please feel free to share effective ways in which you either overcame or could encourage others who may face bullying, harassment, peer pressure, various types of abuse, or any other major challenges, etc.
(Participants may refer to any relevant literature on the topics of civil disobedience or nonviolent social resistance as resources for their entries.)
For additional information about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., please visit The King Center or the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial in Washington, D.C. (http://www.mlkmemorial.org/) websites prior to having students begin their project.
RULES
1. An entry form must be completed and attached to the submission.
a. Poster submission instructions
i. Use pencils, crayons, paints, markers or colored pencils. NO PRE-FABRICATED IMAGES (no magazine cut-outs or clip art). Original art only.
ii. Posters should not be larger than 12” x 18”.
iii. Judging criteria will include: originality, creativity, relevance to the theme, and personal perspective.
b. Essay submission instructions
i. Essays submission is open to the following:
ii. The essay should be typed and double spaced although neatly written essays will be accepted.
iii. Essays should be no longer than four pages, and should include a bibliography on a separate page for reference materials used to support the essay.
iv. The essay must refer to the theme and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy.
v. Judging criteria will include: originality, creativity, relevance to the theme/essay question, and personal perspective.
The submission deadline is Friday, November 9, 2012. All entries must either be delivered or sent by mail to the following address:
Virginia Tech
Office for Diversity & Inclusion
ATTN: MLK Poster and Essay Contest
460 Turner Street, Suite 301 (0708)
Blacksburg, VA 24061
vtmlk@vt.edu
Three winners will be determined per category and will receive the following:
First $50 Gift Card
Second $35 Gift Card
Third $25 Gift Card
Winners will be by notified by letter, and invited to the MLK Community Brunch on Monday, January 21, 2013, where they will be recognized. The breakfast will be held on the Virginia Tech campus.
Anti-Defamation League K-12 Diversity and Anti-Bullying in the Curriculum Resources and Programs
http://regions.adl.org/las-vegas/programs/no-place-for-hate.html
The King Center (includes The Principles for Non-Violent Change)
http://www.thekingcenter.org/ProgServices/Default.aspx
Martin Luther King at Virginia Tech
http://www.diversity.vt.edu/
SOL Information pertaining to MLK
Kindergarten SOL-MLK Pages 13 - 29 Section # National Symbols and American Holidays
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/scope_sequence/history_socialscience_scope_sequence/2001/scopeseq_histsoc_k.pdf
Grades K – 3 MLK Pages 6-9
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/blueprints/history_socialscience_blueprints/2008/blueprints_history3.pdf
Grade 3 SOL – MLK SOL Instruction Tracking Form
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/alternative_assessments/vgla_va_grade_level_alt/optional_forms/tracking_forms/grade3/history.pdf
Grade 5 SOL – MLK Pages 6 – 8 His Truth Is Marching On
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/released_tests/2001/test01_reading5.pdf
Grades K-12 - The Standards & SOL-based Instructional Resources
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/standards_docs/index.shtml
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/standards_docs/history_socialscience/index.shtml http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/standards_docs/english/index.shtml
If you have any questions or need any further information, please contact our office via email at vtmlk@vt.edu, or by phone at (540) 231-1403.