By Megan Kelley
Staff Writer
ORION TWP. — Students from Lake Orion Community Schools gathered with their families last week to kick off the Martin Luther King Jr. artwork showcase featured at the Orion Township Public Library this month.
While each year the elementary and middle schools hold an art contest for Martin Luther King Jr., this is the first year that the artwork is being showcased at the Orion Township Public Library, said Jessica Ligrow, the district’s elementary level DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) coordinator and fourth grade teacher at Carpenter Elementary.
Students began learning about Martin Luther King Jr. in February and were encouraged to take what they learned and express it through various mediums like drawing, painting, poetry, music and even PowerPoint presentations.
“We wanted to put the kid’s artwork on display and be able to show how they see Martin Luther King’s legacy and how they can use their voice with artwork to share his love for the world,” Ligrow said.
All artwork submitted had to be original and follow the theme ‘Stick with Love.’ Elementary school staff picked winners from lower elementary and upper elementary while middle schools picked two winners from each grade level.
“We were looking at how the theme was most creatively shown for each of the levels. Some of it was done through PowerPoint, some of it was done through artwork, some of it done through essay, poetry. So, it’s really neat to be able to see the students all showcase their thinking and their voices in so many different ways,” said Ligrow.
The contest ran from Jan. 12 until the end of January.
The six winners from each school received a certificate, a gift card and also have their artwork displayed at the Orion Township Library throughout the month of February.