Eight NDA students entered the MLK art contest that was held at NWTC this month. Four of them received the top three places and the honorable mention.

The four students who placed in the contest were Rachel Stover, Katherine Vandenheuvel, Lilian Schumacher and Charlie Sauter.

This contest is an annual birthday celebration of the life and mission of civil rights activist Martin Luther King, bringing awareness to his cause and a realization that anyone can help improve civil rights.

Hundreds of K-12 students entered poems, posters, essays or art pieces. They were judged in different age groups but all entered the same contest.

“I was very proud and excited,” said art teacher Barb Brantner, about the students’ success.

The theme of the contest this year was “The time is always right to do what is right.”

“The message I was hoping to get across is that we are all human beings, and whether we live in Syria, Germany or America, we have to stick together and do what we can to help each other when we see someone in need,” said Stover, the first place winner.

“I was nervous, because I knew how good the other pieces were, and I thought that I’d be an honorable mention. I didn’t think my piece could possibly place higher than the others,” said second place winner Vandenheuvel.

As the first place winner Stover got a new IPad Mini and a signed Green Bay Packer football. Vandenheuvel received a tablet, Schumacher was awarded a $50 Barnes and Noble gift card and Sauter a $20 Barnes and Noble gift card.

Although there were prizes for the winners, that is not what this contest was about. It is, according to participants, a way to celebrate and embrace the diversity of the Green Bay area.

“It is always eye opening and amazing to see the different cultures and races all represented in one room. The performers like Native American or Hispanic dancers show us a bit of their culture you don’t always get to see everyday,” said Stover.

The winners’ pieces will be displayed in the Neville Public Museum for the month of February as more of a month-long celebration than a one-day contest.