"Running Against The World" 1st place Youth Group Exhibit NHDAZ 2026

 Jim Rex taught 7th grade American History for 29 years to Arizona students. His love for engaging students to think, get excited about their past and apply evidence to show what they know was something he shared with over 10,000 students during his career. In his honor, National History Day Jim Rex award goes to 4 and 5th graders.

Congrats to National History Day AZ 1st place Youth Group Exhibit "Running Against the World" by Jaxon Gonzalez, Stephanie Escalante Rodriguez, and Ben Bradley. The Historical League supports you.

Arizona Women's Hall of Fame Inductees 2026

 Norma Jean Coulter writes about the 2026 Arizona Women's Hall of Fame Inductees, "The five people were beyond impressive, accomplishing great things in race relations and breaking the glass ceiling. 

May Hicks Curtis Hill, Dr. Laura Noble Banks-Reed, Paula Giangreco Cullison, Daisy M. Bell Jenkins, Allison Marshall Hughes - a most accomplished group."

Many Historical League members are volunteers with this program.

Spirit of the West Museum

Historical League members Norma Jean Coulter, Josie Pete (2025 Inductee)

Norma Jean Coulter, Mary Jo West (2018 Inductee)

Governors  Proclamation naming October 19 AWHOF Day

NHD student Emma Weiss now NHD judge, U of A student and volunteer at AHS

 Watching Emma Weiss grow through National History Day is rewarding. She is pursuing her passion and now attends University of Arizona, while also volunteering at Tucson's Arizona History Museum. Her knowledge of NHD made her an understanding and compassionate judge at the regional contest.

NHD touches lives in so many ways!

NHDAZ co-ordinator Leonard Moody comments, "Emma is working on student resources to help them build their projects for NHD. We share these resources with teachers through our mailing list and also will be posting them to our website."

2026 U of A student, NHD judge, AHS museum volunteer

2024 NHD student

Anabella Kirby wins Roe Family Best Arizona History for her Jr Individual Exhibit

 Nice job Anabella Kirby! She won the Roe Family Best Arizona History Entry of $200 for her Junior Individual Exhibit - When the River Turned Red- The Legacy of Camp Grant. National History Day AZ students have many Special Awards they can qualify for, many with monetary rewards.

The Historical League is proud to support this program.

Ashton Andrade and Yatharth Tomar, NHD students, create website "Apache Junction"

Ashton Andrade and Yatharth Tomar (not pictured) created this first place in state group website for National History Day. Congrats on advancing to National competition.

Apache Junction website

• https://44603187.nhdwebcentral.org/

Approximately 3,000 students (out of more than 500,000) make it to the National contest each year, making qualification a significant achievement in this prestigious academic program. Only 0.6% are judged to have projects that are of a high enough caliber to reach Nationals.

Our 39 Arizona students are in that incredible 0.6%! They brought 27 qualifying projects to Nationals in June. They represented every competition category and every grade level, from 6th-12th grade. Projects included documentaries, exhibits, papers, performances, and websites created through months of original historical research surrounding this year’s theme Revolution, Reaction, and Reform. 

Arizona Historymakers Program Zoom meeting

 Dedicated volunteers: learning, laughing, celebrating Arizona history. So grateful for these Historical League members who take the time to preserve Arizona Historymakers Program. Videos, photos, stories of amazing Arizonans can be seen for years to come. This group, meeting on Zoom, and many more are involved in the Historymakers Program, available on the Historical League website.

Cibecue National History Day students Matthew De Torres and Brady Tessay won The Roe Family Best Arizona History Entry

Matthew De Torres and Brady Tessay from Cibecue, AZ won a Special Award for National History Day AZ. They did a Senior Group Documentary - Viva Libertad: Revolution Against Spanish Rule. The Roe Family Best Arizona History Entry recognized them with a monetary award of $200.

National History Day Arizona brings history to life through project-based learning, research, presentations, workshops, and competitions that encourage students to explore historical topics of their choice. Through participation, students develop critical thinking, research, writing, communication, and problem-solving skills while learning to evaluate sources and construct evidence-based arguments.

The Historical League is a proud sponsor of this program.

Nathan Davies-Venn competes for National History Day

 Mentoring at a National History Day AZ session and I found myself watching the performance of 8th grader Nathan Davies-Venn. Incorporating his amazing violin skills with his story about Jazz, he had the audience captivated. Costumes, props, storyline, sound bites (Blues told the truth), eye contact - he has it.

Congrats to Nathan for winning the Barbara Lewis Award sponsored by Grant Trepanier - $160. Junior Individual Performance titled From Conservatory to Cotton Club.

The Historical League is proud to support this program with volunteers and funding.

Joyce "the Voice" Bailey at Apache Wells Community Church, Mesa, AZ.

 "Music is my joy in life," Joyce "the Voice" Bailey. Historical League member and amazing singer!!

Joyce "the Voice" Bailey at Apache Wells Community Church, Mesa, AZ.

Owen Yin and Adrish Gande advance to National History Day final contest with website

 Approximately 3,000 students advance to the National History Day final contest each year, making qualification a significant achievement. 0.6% are judged to have projects that are of a high enough caliber to reach Nationals. That is 0.6% out of half a million qualifiers! Owen Yin and Adrish Grande are in that 0.6%!!

Congrats for their Jr. Group Website "Built on Speed and Soil; How McDonald’s Transformed the Fast Food Industry."

See this fascinating story on their website:

https://81476506.nhdwebcentral.org/

The Historical League is a proud supporter of National History Day Arizona.

Congrats to W. Ira Parsons with two Special Awards for his NHD Senior Paper

 Congrats to W. Ira Parsons winning two awards for his Senior Paper for National History Day! Titled “The Endless Frontier”: How Atomic Revolution, Reaction, and Reform Gave Us Our Current System of Public Investment in Science.

Ira was recognized for Best Government History sponsored by Stephanie Mann with a monetary award of $50. The prize is awarded to the best entry in any category, in either division, which illuminates the history of the American federal, state, or local government.

He also won The Diana Smith Award of $150 which is given to the paper that exemplifies historical argument aligned with the NHD theme. The author of this paper demonstrates historical analysis, compelling argumentation, strong and documented research, clear writing and insightful engagement with the past. Diana is a very active Historical League member and has been a NHD judge for many years.

Best Use of Oral History at NHDAZ Competition

  Congrats to Kira Lupe, Lily Dehose, Marquez Duane who won a National History Day Special Award for Best Use of Oral History, sponsored by the Southwest Oral History Association - $100.

It was a Senior Group Exhibit titled "Native Boarding Schools."

The Historical League is a proud sponsor of National History Day Arizona.

Andrew Scalero, Minh Quan Hoang and Gia Khang Phan Nguyen did a Senior Group Performance for National History Day

 Andrew Scalero, Minh Quan Hoang and Gia Khang Phan Nguyen did a Senior Group Performance for National History Day and received a Special Award.

" Chinese Immigration in America" won for Equality in History and had a monetary award of $150 from the Arizona Historical Society. Congratulations!!

National History Day is one of the nation’s most prestigious academic programs engaging more than 500,000 students annually from across the country, U.S. territories, and international affiliates.

The Historical League is a proud sponsor of National History Day Arizona.

2017 Arizona Historymaker Wink Crigler and X Diamond Ranch

 Wink Crigler, 2017 AZ Historymaker, and X Diamond Ranch continue to thrive. Historical League members Cathy and Tom Shumard spent two weeks there in September, enjoying the views, weddings, horses, cattle, and stories that go with it. Cathy remarked, "Wink is up early, watching over the ranch, the calves . . . protecting them from any wolves. Then celebrating her birthday at Molly Butler's, which is a sold-out event each year.

Get reservations early if you want to spend time there. X Diamond Ranch is booked every summer.

Sharon Harper 2025 Arizona Historymaker featured speaker

 Sharon Harper, chairman, CEO and co-founder of Plaza Companies, and 2025 Arizona Historymaker will be the featured speaker at the next edition of The Vault, Scottsdale Community Bank’s speaker series featuring conversations with business leaders from across Arizona.

The event will be held from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14, at SkySong, The ASU Scottsdale Innovation Center. Attendance is complimentary for Vault members, according to a press release.

Her honors include the Phoenix Business Journal’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Most Admired Leader and the Trail of Leadership Award from Scouting America’s Grand Canyon Council. In 2025, Ms. Harper and her husband, Ollie Harper, were recognized as Arizona Historymakers by the Arizona Historical League. Listen to her tell her story at https://historicalleague.org/.../sharon-harper-oliver.../

Ms. Harper has spent decades involved in Arizona real estate development and economic development initiatives. Through Plaza Companies, she has overseen a portfolio that includes urban redevelopment projects, medical and health care properties, senior living communities and bioscience facilities. The company has participated in the development of nearly 13 million square feet of real estate across Arizona.

Staff Reports | Happenings & Events from Arizona Digital Free Press. Full story at

https://arizonadigitalfreepress.com/sharon-harper-to.../

Throwback thursday: Tucson in the 1930s

 I'll have a sarsaparilla, please! Throwback Thursday: Tucson in the 1930s.

The beautiful tiled soda fountain at Fred Fleishman & Co., Druggists, in the 1930s.

From the archives of Arizona Historical Society.

Special Award NHDAZ from Weiss Family

 There are many special awards winners from the 2026 National History Day AZ State Competition.

Sponsored by organizations, institutions, or individuals, each special award includes a monetary prize.

Congratulations to all special awards winners!

Here are two awards: Weiss Family Historic Places & Spaces Award - $100 to Owen Yin, Adrish Gande, and $100 to Tanae Lupe.

FYI- Special awards do not have anything to do with advancing to nationals.

Weiss Family Award goes to Tanae Lupe for her Senior Individual Exhibit
"Thanks to J.D.K. Atkinson, My Language is Dying."

Weiss Family presents award to Owen Yin (Adrish Grande not present) for Junior Group Website "Built on Speed and Soil: How McDonalds transformed the Fast Food Industry."