Commodore Dudley W. Knox Naval History Lifetime Achievement Award
The Commodore Dudley W. Knox Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes an individual for a lifetime body of work in the field of U.S. naval history. The award is named for Commodore Dudley Wright Knox (21 June 1877 – 11 June 1960). A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and Naval War College, Knox had a distinguished career as a naval officer with service in the Spanish American War, Boxer Rebellion, Great White Fleet, and World War I. But it was his abilities as a historian, librarian, and archivist that earned him respect and admiration amongst his peers and later generations. Learn more about the Knox Award or submit a nomination.
Previous Knox Achievement Award Recipients:
- 2013 James C. Bradford, William N. Still, Jr., Philip K. Lundeberg
- 2014 John Hattendorf, Craig L. Symonds, William S. Dudley, Harold D. Langley.
- 2015 Dean C. Allard, Thomas J. Cutler, Kenneth J. Hagan
- 2016 Christopher McKee
- 2017 Jon Sumida, Paul Stillwell, Edward Marolda
- 2019 Tyrone G. Martin, Norman Polmar, David Curtis Skaggs, Jr.
STEM Teacher Fellowships
Starting in the summer of 2011, the Naval Historical Foundation began offering competitive STEM Teacher Fellowships to educators from across the country. Please visit our STEM Teacher Fellowships page to learn more.
Captain Kenneth Coskey National History Day Prize
At the annual National History Day festivities that occur every June at the University of Maryland, special prizes are awarded to high school and middle school history projects that best capture an appreciation for naval history. Two such prizes are awarded, one each in the Junior and Senior Divisions, for $1000 each. Judging is conducted by the organizers of National History Day.
The prize is named for the late Captain Ken Coskey, a Vietnam War combat aviator and Prisoner of War, and former Executive Director of the Naval Historical Foundation.
| YEAR | STUDENT(s) | CITY/STATE | NAME OF PAPER/PROJECT |
| 1999 | Michelle Ow | Pensacola, FL | Forging a New Era Through Ironclad Technology |
| 2000 | Thomas Thompson | Prince Frederick, MD | Five Minutes at Midway: Turning Point of the Turning Point |
| 2001 | Andrew Morrison, Rebecca Stover, Ivan Borissow | Owings, MD | CDR Wesley A Brown |
| 2002 | Andy Pope, Zack Piper | Pensacola, FL | Port Chicago Mutiny |
| 2002 | Katie Pauley, Amy Paul | Des Moines, IA | RADM Grace Hopper |
| 2003 | Steven Pelcovits | Providence, RI | Military Ships and Citizenship: Rights and Responsibilities of Blacks in the Civil War Navy |
| 2004 | Sarah Miles | Cheraw, SC | Grace Hopper: Exploration of Women’s Careers in the Navy, Encounters With Technology and Exchange of Knowledge in the 20th Century |
| 2005 | Brynne Piotrowski | Pensacola, FL | Anticipated Arrival: Communications Intelligence in the Battle of Midway |
| 2006 | Justin Schoonmaker | Longdale, OK | Midway: America’s Stand against Japanese Expansion |
| 2007 | Chris Carpenter, John Bergquist, Ridley Heyrend, Matt Miller | Salt Lake City, UT | The Attack and Capture of U-505: A Treasure Submerged in Code |
| 2008 | Adam Sherman | Scottsdale, AZ | Prelude to Pearl Harbor: The Panay Conflict and President Roosevelt’s Compromise |
| 2009 | Karissa Kleinschmidt, Katelynn Scallan, Jesse Adcock | Cantonment, FL | Grace Murray Hopper: America’s Amazing Grace |
| 2010 | Sarah Sadlier | Tacoma, WA | The Marine Chronometer: An Innovative Solution to the Longitude Problem |
| 2011 | Lawrence Alcairo, Marten Lai | Guam | Guam Military Buildup |
| 2012 | Mia Keyser, Challis Debenham, Hallie Whitmore | Anchorage, AK | The Trials of Truth: The Amistad Revolution |
| 2013 | Maria Sutton | Wilmington, DE | The Sinking of the USS Maine: A Turning Point in American Foreign Policy |
| 2014 | Jethro Abayo, Logan Gilbert (Junior Division) | Vancouver, WA | Vietnam Prisoners of War: Taking Responsibility When Deprived of All Rights |
| 2014 | Katharine Journaey, Mark Cochran, Hannah McDonnell, Colby Gould and Emily Pierce (Senior Division) | Exeter, NH | The Golden 13: Civil Responsibility Before Self |
| 2015 | Shaeffer Quinn, Nick Moon, Andrew Bow, Olivia Lennon, and Riley Sproowl (Junior Division) | Boerne, TX | “James and Sybil Stockdale: A Heroic Duo” |
| 2015 | Mickey Sloat (Senior Division) | Davenport, IA | “Leadership in the Cyber Sea: The Legacy of ADM Grace Hopper” |
| 2016 | Cassi Taylor (Junior Division) | Mobile, AL | “Exploring the CSS Alabama: Encounters of the Confederate Raider and the Fiery Exchange with the Kearsarge“ |
| 2016 | Allie Tubbs (Senior Division) | Johnston, IA | “Grace Hopper Dared to Explore Computer Coding, Encounter the Glass Ceiling, and Exchange Intellectual Concepts” |
| 2017 | Jason Benyousky, Ryan Hoffert, Keller Bailey, and Geoffrey Hochstetler (Junior Division) | Warsaw, IN | The Many Stands of Pearl Harbor |
| 2017 | Joseph Horne (Senior Division) | North Berwick, ME | The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard: Helping America Take a Stand against the Axis Powers |
| 2018 | Andrew Karafa (Junior Division) | Ada, MI | “Temporary Truces: How America’s Handling of the Barbary Bullies Molded the US Navy” |
| 2018 | Caroline Maxon (Senior Division) | Henderson, NC | “The Quasi War: The Undeclared Conflict” |
| 2019 | Armaan Needles (Junior Division) | Milani, HI | “Hawaii’s Workers Assist U.S. Triumph after Tragic Pearl Harbor Bombing” |
| 2019 | Ben Kuale and Ella Ratliff (Senior Division) | Siouz Falls, SD | “The Art of Confusion: The Triumph of Dazzle Camouflage after Tragedy” |
Captain Edward L. Beach, Jr. Naval History Award
This prize is given to the U.S. Naval Academy midshipman who has demonstrated exceptional naval history scholarship during an academic year. Judging is conducted by Naval Academy history department faculty. Beginning in 2003, the Prize was named for recently deceased World War II submariner, noted author and long-time Naval Historical Foundation Board member Captain Edward L. Beach, Jr.
| YEAR | NAME |
RESEARCH PAPER/PROJECT |
| 2001 | Midshipman First Class and Brigade Commander Andrew T. Roy | “Sailors as Diplomats: The United States Navy in Bahrain, 1971-1977.” |
| 2002 | Midshipman First Class Von Patrick H. Fernandes | Thesis: “Why Do Men Fight? Choosing to Serve in the Continental Navy.” |
| 2003 | Midshipman First Class Matthew R. Bishop | Studies in naval history |
| 2004 | Midshipman First Class James S. Van Nest | Studies in naval history |
| 2005 | Midshipman First Class Seth K. Powell | “Train for the Known, Educate for the Unknown: The Navy’s Struggle for Clarity with Graduate Education in the Humanities.” |
| 2006 | Midshipman First Class David Faherty | Studies on the origins of the Chinese submarine force |
| 2007 | Midshipman First Class Vanessa Solem | Studies on Kamikazes |
| 2008 | ||
| 2009 | Midshipman First Class Joel L. Hamner | Scholarship at the Naval Academy |
| 2010 | Midshipman First Class Matthew W. Hettiger | Scholarship at the Naval Academy |
| 2011 | Midshipman First Class Clarence F. “Skip” Lambert | Scholarship at the Naval Academy |
| 2012 | Midshipman First Class Zachary D. Schwartz | Scholarship at the Naval Academy |
| 2013 | Midshipman First Class Daniel Ziminski | Insurgency during the time of the Roman Empire, and the culture of the Greek martial society |
| 2014 | Midshipman First Class Matthew C. Huffman | The Effect of Aviation on 20th Century Hemispheric Defense: Defending the Panama Canal |
| 2015 | Midshipman First Class Philip Youngberg and Midshipman First Class Dana Petersen | The Battle off Samar: The 70th Reunion of Taffy 3 Survivors |
| 2016 | Midshipman First Class Luke S. Voss | Scholarship at the Naval Academy |
| 2017 | Midshipman First Class Patrick M. Leech | War Without Fire: Henry V’s Treatment of Civilians in his French Campaigns, 1415-1421 |
| 2018 | Midshipman First Class Ryan Menke | Force in the Far East: Royal Navy Gunboat Operations on the China Station, 1860-1870 |
2020 National History Day Teachers of Distinction Awards
For the third straight year the Naval Historical Foundation (NHF) will recognize talented middle and high school teachers whose students produce award winning projects having a naval or maritime theme in the annual National History Day (NHD) competition.
Continuing a program started in 2018, NHF will present “Teacher of Distinction” awards to teachers whose students (i) win NHF’s annual Coskey Prizes for Naval History or (ii) are ranked first, second or third in their categories in the NHD national competition.
Each year some 3,000 students and several hundred teachers take part in the NHD national competition at the University of Maryland in College Park. This year the competition was scheduled for June 14-20.
However, due to the coronavirus NHD Executive Director Cathy Gorn on March 24 announced that the competition would be conducted in a virtual format to ensure the safety of participants. ”It’s not ideal but canceling was never an option,” she said. The virtual national competition will be in June.
Every year NHD has a broad theme for the student projects. This year’s theme is, “Breaking Barriers in History.”
There are five project categories: papers, exhibits, documentaries, websites, and performances. Competition begins at individual schools, with the top middle and high school winners advancing to regional, state, and national competitions. Some 600,000 students from the United States, District of Columbia, territories, and international schools in China, Korea and South Asia participate annually.
Last year NHF’s Teacher of Distinction awards went to 11 teachers from around the county, two from middle schools, the other nine from high schools. The awards consist of $200 honorariums, NHF certificates of achievement, one-year NHF memberships, and access to NHF Navy-related research assistance.
The NHF Coskey Prizes are named after the late Captain Ken Coskey, a Navy pilot, Vietnam prisoner of war, and former NHF executive director. The NHD prizes were established in 1999. Every year since then NHF has awarded two Coskey Prizes to the top ranked projects in naval history. Each prize is a $1,000 award.
“We’ve been pleased and honored to award the Coskey Prizes for 20 years now,” said Admiral William Fallon, USN (Ret.), NHF chairman. “But we thought it appropriate to also recognize the teachers who inspire the students to produce outstanding naval and maritime projects. Teachers are on the front lines of education and often don’t get the recognition they deserve.”
Vice Admiral Robert F. Dunn NROTC Prizes
The Vice Admiral Robert F. Dunn Prizes recognize and reward midshipmen who show future promise as naval officers and encourage all midshipmen to value their history and heritage as part of their ethos. The prizes are named for Vice Admiral Robert F. Dunn, USN, who retired in 2012 following fourteen years of service as President of the NHF. With former duties that included the Chief of Naval Reserve and the DCNO for Naval Aviation, VADM Dunn has a reputation in the Navy’s intellectual community as a thoughtful writer in publications such as the Naval Institute Proceedings. He currently is a Ramsey Fellow with the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
Read more about the Dunn Prizes here.
| YEAR | NAME |
RESEARCH PAPER/PROJECT |
| 2014 | Midshipman Jasper Burns GRAND PRIZE WINNER Boston University |
“The Merits of Corbettian Doctrine Pre-WWI.” |
| 2014 | Midshipman Diana Vought Regional Winner University of Idaho |
“U.S. Navy’s Implementation of Corbett’s Values.” |
| 2014 | Midshipman Brad Bosserman Regional Winner Texas A&M University |
“The American Empire Propagation.” |
| 2014 | Midshipman Grant Knott Regional Winner University of Minnesota |
“The Naval Origins and Role of Strategic Deterrence: A Core U.S. Navy Mission.” |
| 2015 | Midshipman Michael Odell GRAND PRIZE WINNER University of Idaho |
“U.S. Navy and Coast Guard Joint Operations in Vietnam.” |
| 2015 | Midshipman Connor V. Schueler Regional Winner Iowa State University |
“The Development of the United States Marine Corps Amphibious Assault Function, 1900-1939.” |
| 2015 | Midshipman Joshua Schwark Regional Winner University of Rochester |
“Navy Special Warfare: The Evolution of Navy Special Force to Fit Changing Global Needs.” |
| 2015 | Midshipman Morgan Quinley Regional Winner Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University |
“The Fighting Force of Women in the U.S. Navy.” |
| 2015 | Midshipman Simone Savoie Regional Winner Tulane University |
“The Roosevelt Corollary: Imperialistic Defense of the United States.” |
| 2015 | Midshipman Matthew Decker Regional Winner Carnegie Mellon University |
“Afghanistan Today Versus 1990: A Stronger Government with Potential to Last.” |
