UNIONVILLE, PA — On Monday, February 6, 2023, Lucas and Lillianna Yates were selected as the Chester County Chapter’s recipients of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) American History Essay Contest at the West Goshen Township Municipality building.
The contest is open to students in grades 5-8 who attend public school, non-traditional public school or approved home-schooling programs. The American history essay focuses on the men and women who played a role in the events of the American Revolution and challenges students to explore patriots who interest and inspire them. The patriot could be a famous founder or an everyday man, woman or child who contributed to the American Revolution.
Students who submit an essay are asked to discuss how their patriot contributed to the founding of our nation. Essays are judged on historical accuracy, structure, interest, originality, spelling, grammar, punctuation, and the quality and credibility of references.
Lucas, a fifth-grade student, and Lillianna, a seventh-grade student, at Unionville-Chadds Ford Virtual Academy (UCFVA), were selected as the local winners for their essays on the Second Continental Congress from the perspective of a colonist.
“I chose to sponsor Lucas because he showed initiative by seeking out the DAR essay contest and seemed very excited to present his knowledge of American history. Lucas is a remarkable student who works very hard to achieve academic success and consistently goes above and beyond. He deserves to win this award for his outstanding essay as well as his appreciation for the history of the United States,” said Mr. George Tzanakis, Yates’ fifth-grade asynchronous teacher. “I had the wonderful pleasure of being the one to tell Lucas that he had won, and he was ecstatic. He was very proud of his hard work and was so happy that he had won.”
According to Mr. Justin Flamini, Lilianna’s sponsor and social studies teacher, “Lillianna consistently strives to achieve a complete understanding of historical periods and historical events in our American History class. Whether it be reaching out to ask clarifying questions concerning curriculum, her consideration of various perspectives, or the compilation of thoughtful, conscientious written work, Lillianna embodies many of the characteristics of a successful historian.”
Chester County’s DAR Chapter selected their essays to advance to the state level. The state will select one essay from each grade level to represent Pennsylvania for judging at the Division level. Each division will pick one winner to advance to the national contest.
When asked why she’s proud of Lucas and Lillianna for achieving this award, Shannon Brown, supervisor of online learning for UCFVA said, “This is a challenging competition that requires extensive research and exceptional writing skills. We are all so impressed with Lucas and Lillianna for taking advantage of this opportunity to learn about a part of our history and share what they learned through their essays. Lucas and Lillianna are outstanding students at UCFVA with very bright futures!”
The national winner will be announced in mid-February and will receive a National Winner Certificate, a pin and a cash prize. The winner will also be presented at the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution annual Continental Congress, and the winning essay may appear in official DAR communications.
For information regarding the DAR American History Essay Contest, visit https://www.dar.org/national-society/education/essay-contests.
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