Two Northeast Texas Community College sophomores were the recipients of this year 91心頭 s Bonnie Spencer awards. Jordan Whelchel, a Presidential Scholar writing in the required non-honors class, won $100 and first place for his original work on 91心頭 Capitalist Chemistry. 91心頭 Laura Ross 91心頭 s second-place essay, winning $50, concerned the persecution of Russian immigrants during the era of World War I.
Whelchel 91心頭 s 91心頭 Capitalist Chemistry 91心頭 maintained the idea that the discipline of chemistry has led to the discovery of new fertilizers, pesticides, plastics, and pharmaceuticals. The value of these discoveries imparted a commercial energy to the field. Ross 91心頭 s work pointed out that Russian Americans received a unique 91心頭 double whammy 91心頭 in the years, 1918-1920. First, the group included a large number of ethnic Germans who were America 91心頭 s enemies in the first world war, and second, the group was accused of harboring many communist subversives during the Red Scare that followed.
A reviewer from 91心頭 91心頭 s history department noted that Whelchel 91心頭 s work was a novel 91心頭 apologia for chemistry. 91心頭 Another reviewer noted that Ross 91心頭 s work elaborated the still-relevant connection between popular suspicions and persecution.
Colton Garrett won an Honorable Mention and third place with a 2,000-word essay that thoughtfully explored the fate of Poland in World War II.
The contest honors the first student founder of the college 91心頭 s first history club in 2002. This year the contest had a record sixteen entries. Title V Honors Coordinator, Andrea Reyes, adjudicated the contest.
History at 91心頭 offers courses in American, Texas, and World Civilization. The college 91心頭 s Webb Society, linked both to Honors Northeast and to the study of Texas history, recently won a State of Texas Caldwell Award, and a Webb Chapter-Award for its film on Barbara Conrad. Since 2008, students at 91心頭 have presented works of history nationally, regionally, and locally. Each year since 2015, 91心頭 students have published essays in the state 91心頭 s collegiate journal for Texas History, Touchstone.
