The Thomas D. Clark Undergraduate Writing Award 2018 Committee Chair, Dr. Ashley Sorrell (ashley.sorrell@uky.edu), seeks volunteers to serve as judges for the undergraduate history research paper submissions.
This is a great way to support KATH, and we always get really terrific papers sponsored by great faculty across the state. See more details about this in her post on H-Kentucky here.
This just in from Dr. Melissa A. McEuen, Chair of the Clark Writing Award Selection Committee:
I’ve put together the Clark Award announcement and attached it here (download .pdf file: KATH_2016ClarkAwardAnnouncement). Would you please post or circulate it to the appropriate audiences?
Thank you!
Melissa
—
Melissa A. McEuen
Professor of History and Bingham Professor
Transylvania University
300 N. Broadway
Lexington, KY 40508
Congratulations to all our 2015 KATH Writing Award winners!
Results are in from the George C. Herring Graduate Student Writing Award committee chair, Dr. Melanie Goan. The winner is:
Mel Kapitan, University of Kentucky
for her research paper
“Rebellion in Speech and Monks in Seclusion:
Hildemar of Corbie’s Expositio regulam Sancti Benedicti
and the Community of Monks in Ninth-Century Civate”
Sponsored by University of Kentucky History professor, Dr. Gretchen Starr-LeBeau
According to the KATH Betts Award committee chair Dr. Randolph Hollingsworth, the judges for the Raymond F. Betts Undergraduate Student Writing Award have selected the winner to be:
Sarah Fox, Western Kentucky University
for her research paper
“Soviet Influence on the Music of Socialist Republics”
Sponsored by Western Kentucky University History professor, Dr. Marc Eagle
And the winner of the Thomas D. Clark Undergraduate Student Writing Award is:
Mattie Bruton, Transylvania University
for her research paper
“Sallie Southall Cotten: Womanhood, Racial Purity, and Defining ‘Progress’ in the New South”
Sponsored by Transylvania University History professor, Dr. Melissa McEuen
From Cheryl Caskey, the committee chair for the Anita Sanford Tolson Student Writing Award for high school students, the winner is:
Amir Abou-Jaoude, Henry Clay High School, Fayette County Public Schools
for his research paper
“Richard Wagner and the Legacy of the Leitmotif”
Sponsored by Henry Clay High School social studies teacher, Jonathan McClintock
Please join the 2015 KATH Board in celebrating these students and their faculty sponsors at the 40th Annual Meeting on Saturday, October 3rd in Owensboro. Register to attend now – using our secure online payment process. Download the KATH conference brochure here (.pdf file).
The Kentucky Association of Teachers of History calls for submissions for the KATH Student Writing Awards 2015.
KATH sponsors four writing awards for students each year – two of which are specifically for undergraduates and one for graduate students attending Kentucky postsecondary institutions. The high school award submissions are typically gathered from those sent in for the National History Day competition at the statewide level (see also the KATH post about the Kentucky winners at the national level). The chair for this award committee is Cheryl Caskey, Kentucky Historical Society.
KATH is currently seeking papers written by postsecondary students during the 2014-15 academic year and sponsored by their faculty. The entries will be reviewed by a panel of historians invited by the KATH Board to serve as judges. The winners will be honored with a cash prize and certificate at the annual KATH meeting on October 3rd at Owensboro Community & Technical College.
Please consider inviting your faculty to sponsor their students’ work in history research.
For specific details on the requirements for each award, please download the flyers (here and here) and refer others to the KATH webpage: https://kath-online.org/writing-awards. Please have your faculty send students’ entries for the Clark and Betts awards to Randolph Hollingsworth (dolph@uky.edu) and the Herring award to Melanie Goan (melanie.goan@uky.edu) before midnight, September 11th.
“Entering the Job Market with a BA in History” by Loren Collins
Loren Collins, a career advisor at Humboldt State University, has contributed a read-worthy post for AHA Today, a blog for the American Historical Association. He emphasized in his article that employers are looking for the very skills that our history undergraduates must be able to do in order to do well in our classes:
Collins recommends to recent graduates:
Know how to market your excellent education, explore where you want to put it to use, and talk to all the right employers before they ask for it.
It’s crucial that we tell our students that an undergraduate who earns a history degree has all the right skills demanded by employers for so many jobs. It is important that they know and understand that all the hard work they went through to get that degree was worth it – not just personally but as a potential employee!
SPOTLIGHT ON ASSESSMENT FOR HISTORY RESEARCH PROJECTS IN ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS
Have you seen the evaluation guidelines that the National History Day judges use? How do these guidelines relate to what you are doing in your classrooms? With your assignments’ guidelines? How do these evaluation guidelines for projects produced by students from 4th grade through 12th grade relate to guidelines used in assignments in postsecondary classes?
Historical Quality 60%
Research, analysis, and interpretation of the topic
Thesis or Argument: The thesis is clear, and the entire entry is related to the thesis. The student didn’t add any information that is not related to the theme or thesis/argument.
Entry is historically accurate: The historical facts are accurate as demonstrated by sources and research.
Shows analysis and interpretation: The entry didn’t just state the facts and order of events. It explained how and why this information is related to the thesis.
Places topic in historical context: The entry describes the setting of the events. It discusses what was happening culturally at the time in society and how that is related to the topic.
Research is balanced: The entry examines the topic from more than one of the groups or people involved. It discussed sources that may disagree with the thesis, and responds to these arguments. The entry explains how the events affected more than one group, sometimes on opposing sides of the issue.
Uses available primary sources and shows wide research: The bibliography lists different kinds of primary and secondary sources. It demonstrates research beyond the most well known sources.
Theme and Significance 20%
Clearly relates topic to the theme: The entry clearly demonstrates a clear connection to the theme.
Demonstrates significance of topic in history and draws conclusions: The entry demonstrates why and how the topic had a lasting impact. This can include people, culture, education, politics, art, etc. related to the topic.
Clarity of Presentation and Production Quality 20%
Presentation and written material are original, clear, appropriate, and articulate: The presentation is interesting and original. The tone is appropriate to the topic.
Entry is organized; visual impact/presentation category is appropriate to the topic. The order of the information presented is organized and makes sense. The process paper and bibliography are clear, organized, and thorough. The references are listed using the correct format.
The Kentucky Association of Teachers of History sponsors four writing awards each year. Entries are considered by a panel of historians invited by the KATH Board to serve as judges. The winners, who will have written the papers during the 2013-14 academic year, will be honored with a cash prize and certificate at the annual KATH meeting in October 2014. Please consider sponsoring your students’ work for these awards:
for a high school student who has written an outstanding paper on a history-related topic but the topic should have been determined by the writer (length of 1,500 to 2,500 words plus at least eight references including primary sources)
for the student who has written an outstanding undergraduate research paper in history while attending a Kentucky college or university (must not exceed 25 pages) – download flyer here
for the outstanding undergraduate research paper on a world history topic (from any time period) – the paper can consider American issues and material if the bulk of the paper has a world focus (minimum of 2500 words) – download flyer here
for the graduate student who has written an outstanding research paper in history on any topic (article length) – download flyer here
Please encourage faculty to send their students’ entries via attachment to an email by Friday, September 12th to the following KATH Writing Awards committee chairs:
For specific details on the requirements for each award, please refer to the KATH webpage: https://kath-online.org/writing-awards.
This was a very difficult competition this year, and we have two Betts Undergraduate Writing Award prize winners! KATH has found a way to support two submissions – the winning prize of $100 and a second one with an Honorable Mention prize of $75.
Winner of the 2013 Betts Award: Jared Flanery, UK
Dr. Phil Harling, Professor of History at the University of Kentucky, sponsored the research paper by Jared Flanery who wrote “From the Treaty Port to the Village: Intellectuals and Peasants in the Chinese Communist Revolution” for his Honors section of HIS499 (senior seminar) in Fall 2012.
Honorable Mention: Anna Helton, WKU
Dr. Chunmei Du, Assistant Professor of History at Western Kentucky University, sponsored the research paper by Anna Helton who wrote “Foreign Intrusion as Sexual Seduction: Chinese Anti-Christian Writing and Popular Disturbance” for her Honors History 460 class.
Congratulations to both winners!
The Kentucky Association of Teachers of History sponsors four writing awards for students each year – two of which are specifically for undergraduates. Entries are considered by a panel of historians invited by the KATH Board to serve as judges. The winners, who will have written the papers as students during the 2012-13 academic year, will be honored with a cash prize and certificate at the annual KATH meeting in late September 2013.
Please consider inviting your undergraduate students to submit their work for these awards:
Thomas D. Clark, KY’s Historian Laureate for Life, in 2000
Thomas D. Clark Undergraduate Student Writing Award
for the student who has written an outstanding undergraduate research paper in U.S. history while attending a Kentucky college or university (must not exceed 25 pages)
For more on the impact of Dr. Clark on the study of American history and his life-long efforts in establishing high standards for the preservation of historical artifacts, see the essay in memoriam to him in the October 2005 issue of American Historical Association’s Perspectives.
Raymond F. Betts, in 2006
Raymond F. Betts Undergraduate Student Writing Award
for the outstanding undergraduate research paper on a world history topic (from any time period) – the paper can consider American issues and material if the bulk of the paper has a world focus (minimum of 2500 words)
For more on the impact of Dr. Betts on his students, Kentucky and the world, see this blog post by Alan Cornett.
For specific details on the requirements for each award, please download the flyers and refer others to the KATH webpage: kath-online.org/writing-awards.
Please send your students’ entries to Randolph Hollingsworth via attachment to an email at dolph@uky.edu before the second week in June 2013.
Please recycle (download KATH Betts Award flyer and/or KATH Clark Award flyer here and re-post!
KATH is pleased to announce its competition for the best undergraduate research paper on a United States topic completed during the 2011-12 academic year at a Kentucky college or university. The winner will receive a $100 prize. The award will be presented at the 2012 KATH Conference, to be held at duPont Manual High School in Louisville on Saturday, September 15.
Please direct any questions to Melissa A. McEuen at mmceuen@transy.edu.
Download a flyer here and post it in your department today!
See also the 2012 Betts Writing Award notice.
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Kentucky Association of Teachers of History 