38th Annual National Missing Children’s Day Poster Contest Now Open
OJJDP invites fifth graders to participate in the 38th Annual National Missing Children’s Day poster contest. This nationwide contest creates an opportunity to discuss the issue of missing and/or exploited children.
Poster contest winners will be recognized at the Department of Justice’s National Missing Children’s Day commemoration on May 19, 2021 (tentative).
With the theme of "Bringing Our Missing Children Home," OJJDP invites fifth graders each year to participate in the National Missing Children's Day poster contest. The winning poster is the inspiration for the National Missing Children's Day poster and artwork for the following year. Last year's 2019 National Missing Children's Day Poster Contest Winner was Madison Dozier of Reiley Elementary School in Alexandria, Kentucky.
The contest creates an opportunity for schools, law enforcement, and child advocates to discuss the issue of missing and exploited children with youth and their families and to promote child safety.
Each state hosts its own poster competition and submits the winning entry to OJJDP for the national contest. This year 184 schools across 30 states participated in the contest. The winning poster artwork inspires the National Missing Children's Day logo design for the following year's event.
2020 Winning Poster
The winner of the 2020 National Missing Children's Day poster contest is Elliana Conrad from Antonia Crater Elementary School in Newberg, Oregon.
Elliana's poster represents the theme "Bringing Our Missing Children Home," through the image of a mighty oak tree that includes a family tree within its leaves. Each leaf has the name of a relative on it, and the fallen gray leaf represents the missing child. The heart in the hollow of the tree represents the broken heart of every family missing a child. The tree will never be whole until the missing child is home.
2020 State Winners
View a gallery of winning state posters from fifth graders nationwide.
Contest Submission Information
OJJDP's Missing and Exploited Children's Training and Technical Assistance Program and the National Criminal Justice Training Center at Fox Valley Technical College collaborate with OJJDP to coordinate the poster contest for 5th graders each year.
Contest rules, contact information for state contest managers, discussion materials, and additional information are available each fall. Prospective participants should check with their state contest managers for the state submission deadlines.