Great news from today's awards ceremony at National History Day in College Park, Maryland!
 
Recent Topeka Collegiate graduate Cooper Self '09 (left) took second place in the nation in the individual exhibit category with his exhaustively-researched project Harry Colmery Writes the First G.I. Bill: The Making of the American Middle Class. Cooper estimates he spent 150-200 hours doing primary source research at the Kansas State Historical Society Library, poring over Harry Colmery's personal papers, including drafts of the G.I. Bill.
 
Cooper says the moments before the winners were announced were nerve-racking. He recalls hearing the words, "In second place, from Topeka, Kansas..." and thinking, "Oh my gosh, I think that's me!" By the time they announced his name, Cooper says, "I was halfway down there."
 
Cooper collects a gold medal, a $500 check and the knowledge that his second-place finish distinguishes him as the highest-placing student in the exhibit category in TCS history. "I could not have done it without my teachers," says Cooper, who is grateful to be recognized because "the competition at nationals is so tough."                                                  
 
Congratulations to sixth grader Ella Brown Richards (right) who competed at National History Day in the individual performance category with her portrayal of Coco Chanel in Chanel's Suit: A Reflection of Ambition and Achievement.
 
Topeka Collegiate alumna and Topeka High School junior Sjobor Hammer '06 (below) won National History Day's top prize, the David Van Tassel Founder's Award, which includes a full-ride scholarship to Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. Her senior individual documentary is "With Dignity and Purpose": Ron Walters and the Dockum Drug Store Sit-In. Sjobor has a record of success at National History Day. She took first place in the nation in the senior documentary category in 2008, and finished second and first, respectively, as a TCS seventh and eighth grader with her documentary partner Anna Hamilton '06.

 

This year's History Day theme was "The Individual in History." TCS students spend months researching and completing their projects. In the process, they develop the deep knowledge base and research skills that help equip them for success when they advance to high school, college and beyond. 
 

To learn more about National History Day click here.