Tuskegee University Black History Contest Updates 2.27.23
Happy Monday! (or whatever day you are reading this entry.)
I am Tierney Macon, and I am a proud HistoryMaker student ambassador. Spreading awareness about the archive and its benefits has been very rewarding, not only for the students but also for myself; with every story that is in the archive, I learn more about the hidden gems of black history. Our black history contest on Tuskegee University’s campus can be defined as a work in progress. One of the positive aspects is that the presence of the digital archive has definitely increased. Tuskegee University students and faculty members have seen many posters and social media campaigns related to the HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Olivia and I officially got to meet the History Department and other university officials at our Black History presentation on February 16th. We were able to not only talk about the Digital Archive but also get students intrigued about becoming ambassadors and participating in our contest. The following week, we had an in-person event to get students to complete their submission with us. Even though we had a few people show up to do their submission, we didn't get any submissions by the deadline. Olivia and I talked about ways to get more submissions this weekend after the call.We decided to change some of our rules and hold another contest to encourage students to participate.
The original submission materials included an activity tracker, an infographic, a short essay, and a video presentation. We have now requested that students simply make an infographic, a short essay, and their activity tracker. We felt as if the video essay was too much pressure for the students, and we just want to do everything we can on our end to get students to really engage and participate. We are also reaching out to the history department professors to have the contest featured as an extra-credit assignment for their students. This should gain some traction because many students are in need of extra credit. Lastly, we feel as if the "complete the contest with us" event was very beneficial to answering questions and concerns. The contest has been extended until the end of spring break on Friday, March 10th. We will have another workshop for the students to join us during the break.
My personal goal is to get 15 submissions. This can be achieved, and now that midterms are over and spring break is on the way, I believe that the students can dedicate the time to getting this done. As far as immediate measures go, we are currently updating our judges and requesting faculty members to share the opportunity with their students. New social media posts that will intrigue the students to participate will be posted as early as tomorrow. I am really looking forward to the outcome. Stay tuned and stay blessed.
XOXO Skegee Girl