VISIONS OF UNITY
Student Literature and Arts Contest
Open only to high school students in Torrance, California.
Share your vision of unity, to inspire your peers, see your work published, earn a cash award,
and receive public honor among leaders, elected officials, and community.
Contest Categories
Literature: Poetry, Essay, and Short Story
Visual Arts: Drawing, Painting, Photography, Sculpture, and Computer Graphics
The deadline is January 24, 2014. Visit www.visionsofunity.com for more information.
Contest Purpose
Since 2000, the Visions of Unity Contest has encouraged Torrance youth to reflect on their role in resolving
critical community issues, to artistically express their unique ideas and ideals in a way which broadens minds
and touches hearts, and to take initiative in enhancing unity among diverse groups within their community.
The Visions of Unity contest was inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King, whose birthday comes on or near the
contest’s deadline every year. Now in its 14th year, the contest continues to engage youth, their families,
community leaders, education providers, sponsors, and donors in the power of artistic expression to cross
cultural boundaries and forge new bonds as members of one human family.
Contest Guidelines (more guidelines at www.visionsofunity.com)
Entries should depict the need for and benefits of intercultural or interracial harmony and reflect on resolving
critical community issues. Your contribution should convey your ideas, feelings, or personal stories about unity,
compassion, understanding, cooperation, etc. among people in our society today, and, if appropriate, reflect on
your role as change agents in these arenas. Creativity is important, so please avoid standard portraits or mere
biographies of civil rights leaders.
We want to see your honesty and thoughtfulness as well as your artistic and literary talents to communicate
and express ideals in a way that broadens minds and touches hearts. Entries will be judged by professionals
according to the following criteria: 1) effective treatment of the theme; 2) originality and creative use of the
medium; and 3) mastery of the art form, including grammar and technical details. The deadline for all
entries is January 24, 2014.
Awards Celebration
All contestants who place 1st, 2nd, 3rd, or Honorable Mention will publicly present their work at the Monday,
March 24, 2014 Visions of Unity Awards Celebration. Their published work will appear in the annual Visions of
Unity literary anthology. Winners will also receive cash awards, thanks to the generosity of the sponsors below.
In the last 13 years, more than 400 students have received awards and over $25,000 in cash prizes. Winning
art entries will also be displayed in the Katy Geissert Civic Center Library showcase.
How to Enter or Get More Info
www.visionsofunity.com
Visit
for entry forms and contest details. Literature entries
must be submitted online and art entries will be picked up at your school.
Partners and Donors: The Human Relations Forum of Torrance, along with community partners, seek to celebrate diversity, promote
education and understanding while cultivating a sense of belonging for the diverse population of Torrance. Community partners include Torrance
Memorial Medical Center, the Volunteer Center, South Bay-Harbor-Long Beach, Torrance Unified School District, League of Women Voters Torrance
Area and Palos Verdes Chapters LINKS, Inc.
Donations for awards to the winners from: Toyota Motor Sales USA, Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe, Welch and Company Accountancy
Corporation, Ruth Vogel, Palos Verdes Chapter LINKS, Inc., Shirley Starke Wallace, Torrance Memorial Medical Center, Shirley and Chin-Ming Ho,
Baszile Metals Service, Baha’is of Torrance, Ashcraft Design, Shirley Borks, Pat Kromka, Kamy Akhavan, and the late Dorothy Wu.