Entries must be e-mailed or postmarked by the annual deadline of May 1st   
(click here to download printable PDF)

The prize for each award is $500.00. Each competitor will submit an essay that addresses the issue: “In what way has the study of world history affected my understanding of the world in which I live?”
These awards are presented in conjunction with the World History Association.
The committee will judge papers according to the following criteria:
1) Clear thesis
2) Elaboration on the thesis with specific, concrete, personal example(s)
3) Evidence of critical-thinking, such as synthesis and evaluation, when reflecting on the essay question
4) Organization and fluency
5) Overall effectiveness of the student’s ability to communicate his/her personal connection with the study of world history. In other words, how well has the student described the experience of being changed by a better understanding of world history?

Submission guidelines:

Length: 
Submissions for the K-12 World Historian Award should be approximately 1,000 words.
Submissions for the Community College World Historian Award should be approximately 1500 words.
Formatting:
Number all pages except for the title page.
All pages are to be double-spaced.
Use 12 pt. Times New Roman Font.
Margins are to be 1” left and right, and top and bottom.
Submissions must be composed in Microsoft Word.

No WHA membership required
The author's identity is to appear nowhere on the paper.
A separate, unattached page should accompany the paper, identifying the author, title of paper, home address, telephone number, e-mail address, and name of school.
Papers that do not adhere to these guidelines will be disqualified.

To submit your material by e-mail:

Send the following as separate attachments on the same e-mail:

1. The paper
2. A page with identifying information (author, title of paper, home address, telephone number, e-mail address, and name of school.)

All attachments must be formatted in MS Word.
Send the e-mail to
SmithSusan@District279.org
In the subject line of the e-mail write either:
“Mark Welter K-12 submission” or “Mark Welter CC submission.”

To submit your material by mail:

Send five copies of the paper and five copies of the page with identifying information. In the lower left hand corner on the front of the envelope write either
“Mark Welter K-12 submission” or “Mark Welter CC submission.”

Send the envelope to:
Susan Smith,  Prize Awards Coordinator
Maple Grove Senior High
9800 Fernbrook Lane N.
Maple Grove, MN 55369
Email: SmithSusan@District279.org

Winning papers will be announced in early September to early December, 2013.

The WHA reserves the right to publish in the World History Bulletin any essay (or portion thereof) submitted to the competition. It will do so solely at its discretion, but full acknowledgment of authorship will be given. If someone’s essay is published in whole or in part, the author will receive five (5) free copies of the Bulletin. A one year membership in the WHA will also be included with each prize.

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About Dr. Mark Welter:

Dr. Mark Welter began teaching world history in 1963. He has been a member of the World History Association since 1984.  After instructing at the secondary level for seven years, he earned his doctorate at the University of Minnesota.  He then began teaching his self-authored world history course at St. Cloud State University. Today, he instructs world history and world religions courses for the University of Minnesota Senior Citizen Program.
Dr. Welter’s teaching is predicated upon the philosophy articulated by William H. McNeill that “Teaching world history is a high and noble undertaking” because only world history offers the sufficient dimensions of space and time to elicit needed awareness of the world we all share.”

The World History Association is a community of scholars, teachers, and students who are passionately committed to the study of the history of the human community across regional, cultural and political boundaries.

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