The Pacific Southwest Regional Council of the National Association of Housing & Redevelopment Officials
PSWRC-NAHRO needs your help with showing the rest of the world how important affordable housing is on a national level by highlighting local affordable housing activities within our region.
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October is Housing America Month! This was established by NAHRO in 2007 as a response to requests from members that we work together to raise national awareness of the work of local housing authorities and to recognize the critical role that safe, decent and affordable housing plays in communities across the country.
With this in mind, there is a coordinated effort to raise awareness of any activity that you and your agencies are doing during the month of October. If you have any ribbon cuttings, groundbreakings, open houses or other celebrations, please let us know so that we can make sure to acknowledge your efforts on behalf of Housing America. These events will be highlighted nationally as examples of the amazing work that we do-and how these activities strengthen families and communities.
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Let’s make sure that PSWRC-NAHRO members are well represented! Please tell us about the little or big things your agencies do all year round to help improve the quality of residents’ or participants’ lives. Examples can include opening your waiting lists, hosting a job fair for residents, holding a “Back to School” drive or thanksgiving canned food drive, writing a letter to a member of Congress, entering the poster contest, maintaining a community garden, hosting after school programs, supporting health fairs, writing an op ed in a local paper, etc. Pictures help to tell us all the story but are not required.
The Region’s hope is to highlight every day during the month of October, at least one agency’s activities on the PSWRC website, make a regional “announcement” to our membership via email blast to create some “healthy” competition among you all, and get you recognized for your hard work on NAHRO’s on the Hill blog, social media and NAHRO publications.
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Submit your Housing America Event form so that we can calendar your event and get you that recognition! Please include any relevant background information on your events including pictures, if available.
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For more info regarding the Housing America campaign, please click here.
Housing America is...
Education
By educating community members and stakeholders about housing and community development (HCD) programs, HCD advocates will continue to bring clarity and transparency to the programs we administer. Learn about public perception of housing issues through Zogby Polls, view some key HCD facts, or see outstanding achievement in HCD programs.
Adcocacy
Educating decision makers at the local, state and federal levels about affordable housing is crucial to maintaining the health of HCD programs. See what local communities have planned for Housing America month in the past, join the campaign, or view a few of our Congressional Relations coalitions.
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Empowerment
Empowering past and present residents and clients of affordable housing programs and local stakeholders is one of the most effective ways to communicate the positive impact of HCD programs. See Housing America's annual calendar contest, listen to assisted-housing success stories, or view sample interview questions to share your own residents' stories.
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"What Home Means to Me"
Poster Contest
DEADLINE: May 3, 2024
Since 2008, the What Home Means to Me Poster Contest has recognized the amazing, poignant art of children who live in affordable housing across the country. Each piece of art visually shares the child’s thoughts on what their home means to them. Every year, hundreds of children, ages 5-18, participate in the contest at the state and regional level. Their heartfelt messages about their homes underscore the importance of the work that housers and community development professionals do.
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The national contest is the culmination of numerous poster contests held by public housing authorities, states and regions all across the United States. Three judges choose 13 winners from the regional entries to be featured in National NAHRO’s “What Home Means to Me” calendar for the following year.
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All national winners receive cash prizes. The grand prize winner, whose art is featured on the calendar cover, will also receive a trip to NAHRO’s Washington Conference to meet our membership and their Congressional representatives.
Participating Housing Authorities may begin hosting their individual poster contests following the rules below:
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Eligibility and Selection Categories:
Contest participation is open to all children residing in affordable housing assisted directly or supported under community development and affordable housing programs administered by a NAHRO member authority (i.e., public or Section 8-assisted housing CDBG, HOME, LIHTC).
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Age Categories:
Elementary (K-5th grade)
Middle (6th-8th grade)
High (9th-12th grade)
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Rules/Poster Specifications:
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Theme - "What Home Means to Me"
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Size – All posters must be 22" x 28" to be considered.
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Must have a Landscape/Horizontal orientation in order to be considered.
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Media - Contestant may use any art media (marker, crayon, paint, collage, textiles, etc.), but please consider that posters will need to be packaged, mailed and reproduced.
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Entries must be created by only one person. Entries created by two or more people will not be accepted.
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Important - All submissions must:
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Attach a signed Release to the back of their entry. The Release makes their entry the property of NAHRO and permitting duplication/publication thereof.
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Attach a short narrative on the inspiration, vision and importance of their poster design to the back of the entry.
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Write the contestant’s name, grade level and housing authority on the back of the each entry (separate from the release form)
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Submission Instructions:
Each participating Housing Authority must only submit their three winners –one from each age category. Once the submissions are received, the participating state chapter will vote and select one winner in each of the three age categories. The three selected winners will enter the Pacific Southwest NAHRO Region competition in July. The regional winners will then be sent to National NAHRO for the national competition.
Mail submissions (flat, do not roll) to:
PSWRC NAHRO
12246 FM 1769
Graham, TX 76450
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SUBMISSIONS SENT DIRECTLY TO NATIONAL NAHRO FROM HOUSING AUTHORITIES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.
YOU MUST SUBMIT ENTRIES TO YOUR STATE/REGIONAL CHAPTER.