The Montana Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of Public Instruction (OPI) are working together to give Montana fifth graders the opportunity to participate in state and national poster, Attorney General Knudsen and Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen announced today. The contests focus on the theme of “Bringing Our Missing Children Home.”

The student winning the state contest will celebrate with Attorney General Knudsen and Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen at a later date and receive a $100 cash prize. The winning Montana poster will then be submitted to the national contest. The national poster contest winner, along with his/her parents and teacher, will be awarded a trip to Washington, D.C. to participate in the National Missing Children’s Day ceremony on May 20, 2021.

“Every missing child is one too many. Bringing them home and aggressively prosecuting those who prey on Montana children and putting them behind bars is a top priority for my administration,” Attorney General Austin Knudsen said. “I’m grateful for the support of Montanans in this mission and to our fifth-graders for their efforts in bringing awareness to this serious issue.”

“As a former fifth grade teacher, I recognize students’ ability to be authentic and creative. This year’s contest theme of Bring Our Missing Children Home gives students an incredible opportunity to shine attention on a serious issue facing Montana,” Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen said. “I encourage all Montana fifth grade students, teachers, and families to join the Department of Justice and the Office of Public Instruction in participating in this year’s Missing Children poster contest.”

Posters must be original, handcrafted artwork; 8 ½ x 14 inches in size, with the words “Bringing Our Missing Children Home” appearing on the poster. Posters with digitally produced images, collages, cut-outs, and stamping will not be accepted. Poster artwork will be judged on originality, creativity, use of color and materials, and reflection of contest theme.

A written poster contest student application form must be submitted along with each poster. The application will be judged on the level of understanding of the subject, clarity, and grammar appropriate for the fifth grade. Application and consent forms are available here.

Montana has participated in the annual national “Bringing Our Missing Children Home” poster contest since 2009. To see a list of the persons currently missing in Montana and to get more information on Montana’s AMBER Alert and Missing Persons programs, visit https://dojmt.gov/missing-persons/. The Montana Missing Persons Clearinghouse and the Montana AMBER Alert Program are operated by DOJ’s Division of Criminal Investigation.

Since 2003, the Montana DOJ has issued 46 AMBER Alerts. All 64 children involved were located; tragically, four of them were deceased. In 2016, Montana began using CodeRED to issue AMBER Alerts.

Posters and student application forms must be received by March 1, 2021. Send them to:

Montana Department of Justice Missing Persons Clearinghouse 2225 11th Avenue PO Box 201406 Helena, MT 59620