Leading up to its centennial, the Harris County Historical Society (HCHS) partnered with the University of Houston Center for Public History to create an endowed Award for Excellence for a public history research project related to Houston or Harris County. It is the first and only award for public history work done by undergraduates and the first to be endowed for either graduate or undergraduate students doing public history. The $1,500 scholarship will be awarded annually.

For the inaugural year, HCHS presented two scholarships to Honors students Megan Dagnall and Emily Harris. Megan wrote Houston History articles on former UH presidents Philip Hoffman and Marguerite Ross Barnett to show their contributions in moving UH and the community out of segregation toward diversity. Emily explored the music traditions of Black Texans, Creoles of color and ethnic Mexicans in Houston, researching the music traditions that have impacted Houston’s identity and cultural landscape. Both completed their work for classes taught by Debbie Harwell, and both will have their research published in Houston History magazine.

 UH representatives at the HCHS celebrations included Mark Goldberg, Dean Dan O’Connor, Todd Romero, Emily Harris, Nancy Young, Megan Dagnall, Debbie Harwell, Cameron Thompson and Evie Rickard.

Submissions for next year’s award are due by May 1, 2024. To learn more, visit: https://uh.edu/class/ctr-public-history/news/harris-county-scholarship.php.