Dr. Eric Reiman, Alzheimer's research pioneer announces leadership transition after 38 years at Banner Health.

2025 Arizona Historymaker, Dr. Eric M. Reiman's groundbreaking work transformed Alzheimer's research and positioned Banner as a global leader in detection, prevention studies. 

Banner Health has announced a leadership transition at Banner Alzheimer’s Institute, with Eric M. Reiman, MD, stepping down from his role effective Oct. 1 to embark on a new chapter in his professional and personal life. Over his 38-year career, Dr. Reiman helped shape the global fight against Alzheimer's disease. Under his leadership as founding CEO, Banner Alzheimer's Institute became an internationally recognized Center of Excellence, advancing prevention research and fostered landmark public-private partnerships that have brought the field closer than ever to the first approved Alzheimer's prevention therapies.

Honored as 2025 Arizona Historymaker by the Historical League, he tells his story here. https://historicalleague.org/historymakers/eric-m-reiman-m-d/

Sandra Day O'Connor, Arizona Historymaker in 1992

September 1981: Sandra Day O’Connor was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate to become the first female justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. She became a key swing vote and respected jurist, influencing many significant rulings during her tenure.

The Historical League honored her as Arizona Historymaker 1992 in the inaugural class of Historymakers. Listen to her tell her story at https://historicalleague.org/historym.../sandra-day-oconnor/

Dorothy Zhou and Thanvi Voruganti win Lowell Milken Discovery Unsung Heroes Founders Award

 "I’m thrilled to congratulate Dorothy and Thanvi on winning the Lowell Milken Discovery Unsung Heroes Founders Award. Working alongside these two exceptional young women as they researched and built a project honoring Judith Heumann has been a privilege. Thank you to the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes, the Milken Family Foundation, and everyone who supported our pursuit to tell meaningful historical stories. Your encouragement empowers students to explore, question, and honor the people who inspire us to build a more inclusive future." from NHD teacher and incredible mentor Stacey Trepanier reports.

The Historical League is a proud supporter of the National History Day program and thrilled to see Dorothy Zhou and Thanvi Voruganti doing so well, and telling the Judith Heumann story.

Dorothy Zhou,  Stacey Trepanier, Thanvi Voruganti

teacher Grant Trepanier, Dorothy Zhou, Thanvi Voruganti, teacher Stacey Trepanier

Monetary awards for National History Day Arizona students 2026

Congratulations to all NHDAZ special award winners!

Special Awards 2026

This list entails all of the special awards winners from the NHD State Competition of 2026.

Special awards do not have anything to do with advancing to nationals. Special awards are sponsored by organizations, institutions, or individuals who want to recognize outstanding projects that relate to a specific topic, theme, group, or historical contribution. Each special award includes a monetary prize. Congratulations to all special awards winners!

Best African American History Awards sponsored by the African American Museum of Southern Arizona - $150

1.Junior Paper - Ruby Bridges; A Child Pioneer of Integration

Senior Individual Website - Revolutionizing Education: The Freedom Schools of the Civil Rights Movement by Ethan Tsay

 

AZ Historical Society Award for Equality in History - $150

2.Junior Individual Website - Braille: The Unseen Revolution

3.Senior Group Performance - Chinese Immigration in America

AZ Historical Society Award for Woman’s History - $150

4.Junior Group Documentary - Equality Denied: The Success of the 19th Amendment and Failure of the Equal RIghts Amendment

5.Senior Paper - Sybil Ludington and the Construction of American Patriotism

Best in Western United States History sponsored by the BYU Redd Center - $100

6. Junior Individual Documentary - Not Told Enough History: The Bisbee Deportation of1917

Senior Individual Website - The Delano Grape Boycott: Farmworker Revolution Leading to Reform by Aaron Senthikumar

Weiss Family Historic Places & Spaces Award - $100

Junior Group Website - Built on Speed and Soil; How McDonald's Transformed the Fast Food Industry by Adrish Gande, Owen Yin

Senior Individual Exhibit - Thanks to J.D.C Atkinson, My Language Is Dying by Tanae Lupe

The Roe Family Best Arizona History Entry - $200

7. Junior Individual Exhibit - When the River Turned Red- The Legacy of Camp Grant

8.Senior Group Documentary - Viva Libertad: Revolution Against Spanish Rule

Best Government History sponsored by Stephanie Mann - $50

Senior Paper -“The Endless Frontier”: How Atomic Revolution, Reaction, and Reform Gave Us Our Current System of Public Investment in Science by Ira Parsons

Best Entry for an Arizona Family History or Ethnic History sponsored by the Arizona Genealogical Advisory Board - $100

Senior Individual Exhibit - Thanks to J.D.C Atkinson, My Language Is Dying by Tanae Lupe

Best Use of Archives sponsored by the Arizona Archives Alliance - $150

Sr Group Documentary - Judith Heumann: Trailblazer of the Disability Rights Revolution by Thanvi Voruganti, Dorothy Zhou

9. Jr Documentary - The Bisbee Deportation

Best Use of Oral History sponsored by the Southwest Oral History Association - $100

10. Senior Group Exhibit - Native boarding schools

Diana Smith Award for Excellence - $150

Junior Paper - The Indonesian National Revolution and Its Impact on the World by Aryapadi Hariadi

Senior Paper - “The Endless Frontier”: How Atomic Revolution, Reaction, and Reform Gave Us Our Current System of Public Investment in Science by Ira Parsons

Barbara Lewis Award sponsored by Grant Trepanier - $160

Junior Individual Performance - From Conservatory to Cotton Club by Nathan Davies-Venn

Arizona Story of Arizona Historymaker sponsored by the Historical League - $150

Junior Individual Documentary - The Cool Revolution: How Air Conditioning Reformed The Valley of the Sun into a Habitable Metropolis by Mathew Davies-Venn

Senior Individual Exhibit - Thanks to J.D.C Atkinson, My Language Is Dying by Tanae Lupe

Jim Rex Memorial Award (For Youth Division Participants Only) - $20

Youth Group Documentary - The Smallpox and the Anti-Vax Leagues in England

Youth Group Exhibit - Running Against the World

Youth Group Documentary - Browder v. Gayle: The Four Women Who Fought Back

Youth Group Website - Banditen! Jewish Partisan Resistance During the Holocaust by Graydon Lilly Cohen and Maxwell Martin

Youth Individual Exhibit - Hello Girls

Youth Individual Website - March of Bread and Roses: A Child's Tale

Youth Paper - Too Unfit for a Slave?

Flashback to Friday 1915

 Flashback to 1915 Friday! 

The old plank road circa 1915 that allowed automobiles to traverse the Algodones sand dunes in Imperial County, CA connecting Yuma to San Diego. This photo shows a Studebaker on the first plank road carrying passengers to Holtville, CA from Yuma.

From Arizona Historical Society.

Photo Identifier - PC1000_42039— with Clarence Ratcliff.

Grand Canyon History

On Labor Day 1971, two professors from Northern Arizona University conducted a study of the noise level at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. At that time, air traffic was allowed to fly over the area. "Noise levels at this once tranquil vacation spot now rival levels on a busy downtown street."

The peak at times was 90 decibels. The tests were performed on the South Rim, near Phantom Ranch, and along two inner canyon trails. "Researches said there was no time, from dawn to dusk when they did not hear the sound of an aircraft flying over the canyon."

Thanks to Grand Canyon Historical Society for this history.

Kristen Rex at Library and Archives, Arizona History Museum in Tucson

Kristen Rex views the treasure trove of knowledge at Library and Archives, Arizona History Museum, after an epic transfer from Pioneer Museum in Flagstaff. As AHS Education Director, she knows there is a world of rich Arizona history to be found in those stacks.

National History Day Arizona students can be directed to this valuable resource.

The 28th Annual Prescott Indian Art Market Sept 19-20, 2026

 The 28th Annual Prescott Indian Art Market is just around the corner!

Join us Saturday, September 19, and Sunday, September 20, 2026, for two days celebrating Native American art, culture, music, performances, demonstrations, and more at Sharlot Hall Museum.

PIAM features more than 80 top Native artists in this juried fine arts market, showcasing an incredible variety of work, from oil painting and beadwork to pottery and weaving. Experience Native American culture in a unique and meaningful way while supporting Indigenous artists and celebrating their creativity and traditions.

Admission is $15 for non-members. Sharlot Hall Museum members and children under 9 are free.

Mark your calendar and join us for a weekend of art, culture, and connection!

Arizona History Museum in Tucson

 Tucson Lifestyle August article: The Arizona Historical Society (AHS) @arizonahistoricalsociety was founded in Tucson in 1884 as the Society of Arizona Pioneers by Dr. John C. Handy, his father-in-law William Fisher Scott, and 58 fellow pioneers. Originally created to preserve personal narratives of early Arizona life and serve as a mutual aid society, the organization evolved over the decades, becoming the Arizona Pioneers’ Historical Society in 1897 and adopting its current name in 1973. Today, AHS serves as the state’s steward of history, with a mission to collect, preserve, interpret, and share Arizona’s heritage through exhibitions, educational programs, publications such as the Journal of Arizona History, and outreach initiatives, including National History Day. Its holdings include more than three million artifacts and manuscripts that document the cultural, political, and economic history of Arizona, the greater Southwest, and northern Mexico.

The Arizona History Museum in Tucson, located at 949 E. 2nd Street at Park Street, is the largest of AHS’s museums. Designed by iconic Tucson architect Josias Joesler, the museum offers immersive exhibits that cover Southern Arizona’s past from the Spanish colonial period through statehood, featuring collections of Spanish silver, Old West firearms, and artifacts tied to figures such as Geronimo, Wyatt Earp, Santa Anna, John Dillinger, and many more. Kids love the upstairs hands-on area featuring recreations of different ways people have lived in the Desert Southwest over thousands of years. The Arizona History Museum is a wonderful way to escape the heat while appreciating the incredible history of our beloved state.

Indian Citizenship Act also known as Snyder Act

 On this day September 4 in 1924, Tribes across Arizona voted for the first time after the enactment of the Indian Citizenship Act, also known as the Snyder Act. This photo is available on our #ArizonaMemoryProject, courtesy of the Arizona Historical Society.

The Snyder Act granted U.S. citizenship to those born to tribal communities. Although indigenous peoples lived on the continent long before the colonization of the Americas and the creation of the U.S. Constitution, legal interpretations such as the Elk v. Wilkins (1884) Supreme Court ruling excluded Native Americans from citizenship, even if they were born on U.S. soil. The Snyder Act reads in part: "...that all non citizen Indians born within the territorial limits of the United States be, and they are hereby, declared to be citizens of the United States..."

Swimming in Arizona

 Pool party like it's 1900!

Before public pools, Arizonans got their swim on in lakes, rivers, and ditches (talk about a wild ride!). Then came the safe haven of public pools, followed by private pools after WWII. And remember, no horsing around in the pool (literally! ) : Humans and horses getting their splash on at the Double U Guest Ranch.

Thanks to Arizona Historical League photos #100-0003278

Primary and Secondary Sources with National History Day

 Can you spot the primary source?

Understanding the difference between primary and secondary sources is one of the most important skills you'll build through National History Day. 

Primary sources give you firsthand evidence from the time you're studying, while secondary sources help explain, analyze, and interpret that evidence. Both have an important place in historical research, but knowing when and how to use each one is what makes a strong historian.