Young Historian Awards 2022 presented in Leitrim

Transition Year students at Mohill Community School were presented with awards last Monday, May 23, for participating in the second Young Historian awards, with Brianna Faughnan winning the overall prize for her detailed account of the life and deportation of Jimmy Gralton.

Historian and author Fiona Slevin said “Brianna’s submission stood out for its originality, diligent research and storytelling”.

The Young Historian programme was initiated last year by Fiona Slevin and Natalie Fryde, who worked again with Pauline Brennan and Mary Conefrey at Leitrim County Library to implement the programme.

“This year, we were really gratified to have five schools participate, and to receive over sixty submissions”, said Fiona Slevin.

Students were asked to address the theme of ‘History on Your Doorstep’ and to pick a project and format that followed their skills and interests. Natalie Fryde praised the students for the “very high standard of achievement”, which she said was above expectations and “showed signs of excellent teaching”.

Thomas Nolan, history teacher at Mohill school said, that the competition “promoted research and investigation through various types of sources”, and “awakened in students, an interest in the rich history of Mohill and Co Leitrim”.