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A high school history project on Harlem Globetrotters founder Abe Saperstein was selected for a special presentation to the public at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, June 17, as part of the National History Day (NHD) competition.

Alex Nielsen and Koby Deitz, freshmen at Charles Wright Academy in Tacoma, Wash., took second place in a state competition for National History Day (NHD) with a six-foot exhibit on Saperstein and the Globetrotters.  That propelled the students to the NHD national competition at the University of Maryland, College Park campus from June 14-18, during which time they presented their exhibit to the public at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, which recently reopened after two years of renovations.

The Kenneth E. Behring National History Day Contest is an annual competition for students from across the country designed to encourage and showcase young historians. For this year’s contest, students conducted research and developed tabletop exhibits, dramatic presentations, video documentaries, papers, and websites focusing on “The Individual in History: Actions and Legacies.”  

During its creation, the students inquired about an interview with a player to add to their project, but they never imagined that they would get Buckets Blakes and legend Curly Neal to come to their school, which they did on April 16.  Blakes and Neal taught the boys what impact the Globetrotters had on basketball worldwide, from kick-starting the integration of African-American players into the NBA, to the role of Ambassadors of Goodwill™ all over the world.