Students from Northboro Elementary School, Western Pines Middle School, and Palm Springs Middle School earned the top prizes in the 2013 Fair Housing Student Poster and Essay Contest held in observation Fair Housing Month, observed each year in April. Sponsored by the Palm Beach County Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO), the Realtos Association of the Palm Beaches (RAPB) and the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County (LAS), the winners were honored at a reception held April 25 at the Realtors Association offices in West Palm Beach.
The following students were winners in the county-wide competition. Coincidentally the top three places in each category attend the same schools.
| Third Grade Poster Contest | School |
| 1st Place - $100 gift card Laci Kinder 2nd Place – $50 gift card Walker Perez3rd Place – $ 25 gift card Ja’mya Oliver | Northboro Elementary School |
| Seventh Grade Poster Contest | |
| 1st Place – $100 gift card Ana Mattos2nd Place – $50 gift card Yanguie Lorenzo3rd Place – $25 gift card Sallanda Sampson | Palm Springs Middle School |
| Seventh Grade Essay Contest | |
| 1st Place – $100 gift card Andre Soucy2nd Place – $50 gift card Gabriel Bagnoli3rd Place – $25 gift card Cody Roland | Western Pines Middle School |
This year’s theme, “Fair Housing: Every Face Needs a Place” recognized the 45th anniversary of the Fair Housing Act of 1968.
The goal of the competition is to raise public awareness of enactment of the federal Fair Housing Law, Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, familial status, disability, national origin, and gender, and to encourage fair housing opportunities for all citizens. In addition, Palm Beach County’s Fair Housing Ordinance prohibits discrimination based upon sexual orientation, age, marital status and gender identity or expression.
For more information, please visit www.pbcgov.com/equalopportunity