Junior Duck Stamp Contest
Fort Scott Kan. – Saturday, February 19, 2022, Fort Scott National Historic Site and Marais des Cygnes National Wildlife Refuge are presenting the 29th annual national Junior Duck Stamp art contest. Art programs will run from 10am-noon and 2pm-3:30pm and all students in kindergarten through grade twelve are encouraged to participate in the art and conservation message contest. Participants need to check in at the park’s Visitor Center at 10am and 2pm for directions.
During the program participants will learn more about types of waterfowl and also what the judges look for in the artwork. Participants will create original artwork using watercolors, crayon, or pencil. Because students express themselves best in different formats, the conservation message contest gives them an opportunity to use the written word to express their knowledge. Submissions of your Junior Duck Stamp entry may be made on this day at the park or to the Great Plains Nature Center in Wichita for Kansas entries. Entry forms will be available and all entries must be postmarked by March 15, 2022.
Margaret McMullen, an 18-year-old from Kansas, took top honors in the Service’s National Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest with her acrylic rendition of a pair of Hooded Mergansers. The winning conservation message was by Josie Arp, 15, of Arkansas with her message: “When the world turned upside-down nature calmly and quietly laid a blanket of comfort over us all.”
The Federal Junior Duck Stamp Conservation and Design Program began in 1989 as an extension of the Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, commonly known as the Duck Stamp. The first national Junior Duck Stamp art contest was held in 1993. The stamp encourages students to explore their natural world, participate in outdoor recreation activities, and learn wildlife management principles. National Junior Duck Stamp Contest winner receives $1,000. The second-place winner receives $500; the third-place winner receives $200; the Conservation Message winner receives $200. Other prizes are awarded at the state level for each age category.
The National Park Service currently requires that everyone, regardless of vaccination status, wear a mask in all federal buildings and outside when others are present and physical distancing (staying at least six feet apart) cannot be maintained.
Credit Photo as Margaret McMullen Artwork