We are so proud to share that two of our student groups have become national semi-finalists in the Discovery Award Competition for the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes. Claire Z., Caroline G., and Lucia C., for their project on William Bronston. Nico C., Sadie G., and Grace R., on their project on Truus Menger-Oversteegan.
William Bronston is an American psychiatrist and activist known for his involvement in the deinstitutionalization of Willowbrook State School in the early 1970s. Willowbrook was a state-supported institution for children with intellectual disabilities in the Willowbrook neighborhood of Staten Island in New York City, which operated from 1947 until 1987. The girls created a documentary detailing his involvement in shining a light on the inhumane care at the state school and he helped shut it down. The documentary showcases images and videos of the girls’ interviews with Dr. Bronston.
Process Paper and Annotated Bibliography Link
Truus Menger-Oversteegan was a Dutch resistance member during the occupation of the Netherlands in World War II when she was just a teenager. She was a member and then leader of the anti-Nazi Dutch Resistance, together with her sister Freddie Oversteegen and their friend Hannie Schaft. The three women began bombing trains, smuggling out Jewish children, and running refugee safehouses. But their most dangerous work was also their most unlikely: assassinating Nazi officers in broad daylight. Nico, Sadie, and Grace were able to interview direct sources that personally knew Truus and her sister Freddie, author Sophie Poldermans and Truus’ daughter, Hannie. The girls’s showcased their work with a interview style video with reenactments.
Video - coming soon
“These role models demonstrated extraordinary courage and compassion without seeking credit for it. They changed the world and influenced our lives, but their names are often not found in history books. We call them Unsung Heroes—but they are only unsung until discovered and celebrated.
The Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes' Discovery Award competition provides students a unique opportunity to do just that: use their creative talents to research primary sources and develop outstanding projects that feature Unsung Heroes who can serve as role models and inspire others to create change.” -www.lowellmilkencenter.org/competitions/discovery-award