Building Safety Month Student Essay Contest winners announced

The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development announced the winners of the 2018 Building Safety Month Student Essay Scholarship Contest. Five students from throughout Virginia were awarded scholarships through the essay contest.

“Each year, DHCD celebrates Building Safety Month and recognizes the importance that safe, sustainable buildings have on each citizen of Virginia, and the Building Safety Month Student Essay Contest is a fitting way to promote building safety to our citizens, especially our students,” said DHCD Director Erik Johnston. “It was a tough competition between all of the entries, and DHCD applauds all of the winners of the essay contest.”

The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, in partnership with the Virginia Building and Code Officials Association and the Virginia Plumbing and Mechanical Inspectors Association, sponsored the student essay scholarship contest, with scholarships up to $2,000 available to the winners. This year’s theme was “Building Codes Save Lives,” and each entry required a 1,000-word or less essay that illustrated how building codes impact the student’s individual and community safety.

Building Safety Month is a public awareness campaign celebrated by jurisdictions worldwide during the month of May for the past 38 years to help individuals, families and businesses understand what it takes to create safe and sustainable structures. The campaign reinforces the need for the adoption of modern, regularly-updated building codes, a strong and efficient system of code enforcement and a well-trained, professional workforce to maintain the system.

Below is a list of 2018 Building Safety Month Essay Scholarship Contest winners:

• First Place – $2,000 Scholarship
  Thea Konefal, Maggie Walker Governor’s School | Richmond, VA
• Second Place – $1,000 Scholarship
  Caroline Maloney, Freedom High School | Loudoun County, VA
• Honorable Mention – $500 Scholarship
  Madilyn Abbe, Loudoun Valley High School | Loudoun County, VA
  Pierina Rossini, Liberty University
  Nicholas Dize, Loudoun Valley High School | Loudoun County, VA

For more information or to read the winning essays, visit www.dhcd.virginia.gov.