Two young KidWorks students were recently recognized not only for their artistic talent, but also for their social awareness.
Fifth graders Lesly and Aaliyah took first and third place respectively in a poster contest sponsored by the Fair Housing Council of Orange County.
The students’ artwork was selected from among hundreds of posters submitted by students in grades four and five.
“The contest gave KidWorks students an opportunity to learn about fair housing laws and to depict what they learned in an artistic style that represents their views on fair housing choice,” says Kriss Goss-Marr, our Director of After School Programs.
The winning students were presented with a framed picture of their poster, a certificate, and a cash prize.
“I couldn’t believe that I had gotten third place out of all of those drawings,” Aaliyah says. “I just drew a house with all the things that I would want for my family in my home.” She is a student at our Bishop Manor center.
Lesly and Aaliyah are also applying the lessons they learned at KidWorks about financial literacy. Both plan to save the money they were awarded.
“It’s inspiring to see our students envision their ideas about fair housing choice. Many live in overcrowded and very difficult home environments where it would be easy to get discouraged. However, this contest provided encouragement to dream and create change so that fair housing laws and healthy living conditions would be a reality for all.”