TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida is calling on elementary, middle and high school students to pick up their pens and spill their creativity on the page in honor of Black History Month for a chance to win college scholarships.
Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis announced the theme for this year’s Black History Month student and educator contests Friday.
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A “Celebrating African-American Contributions to Florida’s History” theme will have to thread through participating essay and art contest entries in order to qualify. Excellence in Education awards will also be presented to full-time teachers nominated statewide.
Find more information on each contest below:
Student Art Contest
Students across the state in grades K-3 are invited to enter the contest with original, 2D artwork based on this year’s theme. A total of two winners will be selected.
Student Essay Contest
Students across the state in grades 4-12 are invited to enter the contest with an essay no longer than 500 words based on this year’s theme. Three winners will be selected, including an elementary school student (grades 4-5), a middle school student (grades 6-8) and a high school student (grades 9-12).
Each winning student will receive a 4-year Florida College Plan scholarship provided by the Florida Prepaid College Foundation.
Excellence in Education Award
Students, parents, teachers and principals are encouraged to nominate full-time elementary, middle and high school educators across the state for the Black History Month Excellence in Education Award. Three winners will be selected, including an elementary school educator (grades K-5), a middle school educator (grades 6-8) and a high school educator (grades 9-12).
All entries are due by 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 18.
Student contest forms and education nomination forms can be mailed to the Black History Month Committee at Volunteer Florida at the following address:
1545 Raymond Diehl Road, Suite 250
Tallahassee, Florida 32308
The committee recommends you mail the forms with enough time to meet the deadline.
Entries can also be submitted online by clicking here.
For more information about the contest, visit Floridablackhistory.com.