{"id":947,"date":"2012-06-02T13:41:00","date_gmt":"2012-06-02T21:41:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/?p=947"},"modified":"2020-04-07T13:08:30","modified_gmt":"2020-04-07T21:08:30","slug":"humanities-endowments-produce-four-scholars-papers-cover-charter-schools-special-forces-nuclear-policy-and-churchills-public-relations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/2012\/06\/02\/humanities-endowments-produce-four-scholars-papers-cover-charter-schools-special-forces-nuclear-policy-and-churchills-public-relations\/","title":{"rendered":"Humanities Endowments Produce Four Scholars: Papers Cover Charter Schools, Special Forces, Nuclear Policy and Churchill\u2019s Public Relations"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This article originally appeared in the summer 2012 Harker Quarterly<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Mitra Family Endowment, established last year, has borne its first fruit. Sarah Howells, grade 12 and the first Mitra scholar, added her effort to the handcrafted social and historical analyses produced by this year\u2019s three John Near Endowment scholars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Howells chose a classic and controversial character for her subject and found an angle not fully explored for her paper, \u201cWinston Churchill\u2019s Efforts to Unify Britain From 1940-1941,\u201d a look at his public relations efforts as they affected Britain\u2019s morale in early World War II.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2011, Harker parents Samir and Sundari Mitra (Shivani, grade 11) established the Mitra Family Endowment for the Humanities, which matches gifts to the annual giving campaign up to a total of $100,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe subject matters taught under humanities such as history, languages, communications and philosophy are critical skills and knowledge that develop well-rounded Harker students,\u201d said Samir Mitra at last year\u2019s reception. \u201cHumanities is the bedrock of a superior education and will enable our students to stand out as recognized contributors in their future professions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI knew I \u2028wanted to apply\u2028 for the Mitra \u2028grant because \u2028I had enjoyed \u2028world history \u2028so much in my\u2028 sophomore\u2028 year,\u201d said Howells. \u201cI thought about Britain; my family was affected on two sides by World War II, both in Poland and in Britain.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Too broad at first, her topic choices \u201cquickly narrowed to Churchill\u2019s remarkable unification of the government and retaining the trust of the people during the war,\u201d said Howells, who will attend Princeton in the fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Howells noted, \u201cThe most interesting part of writing the paper was transitioning from the researching to the writing. That was the most difficult task for me, since I had a myriad of great resources but no idea how to put them all together.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Howells took on a subject usually taken for granted \u2013 Churchill\u2019s ability to relate to the \u201ceveryman\u201d and to the highest in the land (he often personally briefed King George VI on the war\u2019s progress) \u2013 and examined its worth in keeping the spirit of resistance alive in beleaguered England. Her writing, worth the read in itself, conveys the passion that Churchill used to inspire fellow politicians and those in the street. Her division of material shows the way for further research on how Churchill handled groups differently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like all good researchers, Howells pointed out the weakness in her own paper, the inability to examine the records of Mass Observation and Home Intelligence, a government bureau that monitored the public pulse, due to their volume and her limited access. Howells noted that lacking the confirming information in those records, it was hard to be sure of widespread public approval of Churchill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been such a pleasure to work with Sarah,\u201d said history teacher Ruth Meyer, Howells\u2019 mentor through the process. \u201cShe is so balanced in her approach to research, she\u2019s so steady in everything that she does, so well organized.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOverall, the process of writing the paper was an exciting and challenging opportunity,\u201d said Howells, \u201cand I\u2019m glad I could get a taste of what real humanities research is like before I head off to college.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the reception, Howells gave emphatic thanks to her teachers and mentor, saying, \u201cI don\u2019t think I could have done this if you hadn\u2019t suggested to me that I was capable of completing such a long senior thesis.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m overwhelmed,\u201d said Sundari Mitra, noting the scholars\u2019 efforts to \u201cinspire us parents. \u2028We are really honored and proud that with whatever little we could do, the school has utilized it in such a tremendous manner, so thank you Mr. Nikoloff, the faculty, everyone. I\u2019m really touched and inspired.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The $300,000 John Near Excellence in History Education Endowment Fund, in memory of the 31-year veteran of Harker\u2019s teaching staff who passed away in 2009, was made by his parents James and Patricia Near to, in John Near\u2019s words, \u201chelp develop the history department, both through the acquisition of resources and by providing growth opportunities for both faculty and students.\u201d Each year, three students receive grants from the endowment\u2019s proceeds to be used for research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Near scholar Max Isenberg, grade 12, chose a subject Churchill, as a former First Lord\u2028 of the Admiralty, would have been very interested in: the use of on-station naval power as a worldwide deterrent, something at which the British were old hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Isenberg\u2019s paper, \u201cArleigh Burke\u2019s Submarine-Based Finite Deterrent: Alternative to the Nuclear Triad,\u201d an examination of Admiral Arleigh Burke\u2019s answer to ballooning costs involved\u2028with maintaining a three-point nuclear deterrent (aircraft, missiles and submarines all carrying nuclear devices), was carefully researched and covered the salient points of the argument.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Isenberg, who will attend the University of Pennsylvania for the Jerome Fisher Management and Technology program in the fall in a dual-degree program for business and engineering, noted, \u201cMy favorite part of the entire project was looking at the competing theories of nuclear strategy, and how they had consequences not immediately obvious until later in the Cold War.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe most difficult part of the project\u2028was finding solid first-person sources, especially considering the tight classification of many details from the\u2028Cold War,\u201d he added. \u201cThat difficulty\u2028 partly contributed to my eventual focus\u2028on nuclear strategy as many of the major players in the development of the Triad and finite deterrence had published works, while a lot of the nitty-gritty details of submarines remain inaccessible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Isenberg is appreciative of the grant, thanking teacher and mentor Ramsey Westgate, Susan Smith, library director, and Donna Gilbert, history department chair, for their help. \u201cI don\u2019t think there are very many schools of any sort that offer such a rare opportunity to do history research specifically and then give the leeway to explore the topic in such a thorough manner,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dwight Payne, grade 12, chose a current social topic and, as he was out of town during the reception, delivered his address via video. His work, \u201cCan Charter Schools Close the Achievement Gap?\u201d was mentored by teacher Kelly Horan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Payne\u2019s closely researched paper delves into the arcane world of evaluating charter school results. He located a number of studies which threw light on a portion\u2028 of the process of evaluation and allowed limited conclusions to be drawn on the efficacy of the charter schools studied. Payne identified some commonalities within the studies and used them for his next step, interviewing charter school administrators and examining the records of their schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The schools examined in this portion of the project had a spectrum of student results and, although Payne found and used common criteria for eliminating or at least accounting for bias, the differences between schools, including stability, age of students (one was high school, the others lower and middle schools), location, teaching methods and teacher evaluation and training methods made drawing firm conclusions problematic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Payne was comfortable, however, generally endorsing charter schools as an option\u2028for helping those desirous of helping themselves, feeling that time will only improve the system as learning processes are refined and expanded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it came time to write the paper, \u201csifting through the breadth of literature was a difficult task,\u201d said Payne, who will attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, majoring in business administration with a possible second major in either economics or psychology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another hurdle was maintaining objectivity. \u201cIt was difficult to swallow\u2028my own biases going into the process\u2028and accept that most of the literature I read presented inconclusive or conflicting data,\u201d Payne said. \u201cFrom that knowledge, however, it was rewarding to conduct interviews that examined specific examples of successes or challenges that were illuminating despite the difficulty of reaching an overall conclusion regarding the effectiveness of charter schools in closing the achievement gap. I particularly enjoyed meeting with school leaders, and I was very inspired by their dedication. The administrators whom I interviewed were incredibly helpful and eager to share their work; I am immensely grateful to them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Senior Cole Manaster, like Howells and Isenberg, chose a military topic with political ramifications. His effort, \u201cThe Changing Dynamic of Unconventional Warfare: The U.S. Special Forces in Vietnam and Their Impact on Modern \u2028War,\u201d traced the development of special operations forces first as trainers of villagers in war zones to strengthen them against enemy efforts, then in their roles as covert, uniformed operators behind enemy lines. Manaster documented the status of special operations forces as, following WWII, they grew from a compound of various forces \u2013 Army, Navy, Marine and CIA \u2013 to the ultimate acceptance of these forces and their integration in the overall military effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, we are all familiar with the effort\u2028to capture the \u201chearts and minds\u201d of non- combatants in military zones, and Manaster illustrated how that effort grew from\u2028early efforts to keep South Vietnamese \u2028and other indigenous groups in Vietnam from falling, or being coerced, under the influence of North Vietnamese communists, while noting that a special operations forces mandate also puts them in the most dangerous situations a soldier is likely to face, i.e., behind enemy lines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was fascinated by this facet of the war \u2013 how special forces were used,\u201d he said, \u201cso I looked at how they were used in the Vietnam War and somewhat how they have been used since.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manaster, who will be going to the University of Southern California next year as a business administration major, said he \u201cwanted to be able to use the things I have learned in my history classes and all my classes,\u201d but noted, \u201cthe toughest part of writing such an extensive paper was keeping myself on track timewise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His topic firm, Manaster found the next step a challenge. \u201cIf I could do it all again, I would probably have spent more time solidifying my outline before writing the paper itself. What I had in my outline made the writing process itself immensely easier, but I think I probably could have done even more, looking back on it now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was really happy to be Cole\u2019s mentor,\u201d said Carol Zink, history teacher. \u201cI\u2019ve seen his intellectual growth and development over the years and it\u2019s always tremendously rewarding for a teacher to get to see that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zink noted one of the challenges Manaster had in pursuing his research is that it is difficult\u2028to find unbiased sources on this topic. \u201cThere are a lot of books that are \u2018Yay-rah, Green Berets!\u2019\u201d she said, \u201cand then there are other books that say the United States should never have gone into Vietnam in the first place and they (the Green Berets) were the dirty dogs in the deal. It is very difficult to try to walk the middle line, and I know that was a struggle for Cole, but I know he persevered.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pam Dickinson, John Near\u2019s widow \u2028and director of Harker\u2019s Office of Communication, again represented the Near family. \u201cLike last year, I felt very much as though John was channeled with the presentations,\u201d Dickinson said, noting facets of each paper that interested the Near family. \u201cJohn would be incredibly proud. I\u2019m honored to be here on behalf of his parents, and it is a wonderful thing that the Mitras have done. Congratulations. You all have done a wonderful job.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manaster echoed the thanks of the other scholars, adding, \u201cAll of us have put in a lot of work and it is exciting to see our papers truly come to fruition and to have this at the close of our senior year, as well. I\u2019m very honored to have been a part of this program, and it is something I\u2019m going to remember for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This article originally appeared in the summer 2012 Harker Quarterly The Mitra Family Endowment, established last year, has borne its first fruit. Sarah Howells, grade 12 and the first Mitra scholar, added her effort to the handcrafted social and historical analyses produced by this year\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[193],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-education-and-schools"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=947"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/947\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":948,"href":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/947\/revisions\/948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fnsreporting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}