Announcing  the Fifth Annual Fracchia Prize for
San Francisco  high school students

Original Research and Writing  about San Francisco History

The San Francisco Historical Society is excited to announce the Fifth Annual Fracchia Prize competition. This contest is endorsed by Mayor London Breed. It is open to any student attending a high school in San Francisco. Interested candidates are required to submit an essay consisting of between 1,200 and 1,600 words, or a five-to-seven-minute multimedia presentation, based on the prompt below. Entries are encouraged to be submitted electronically. Instructions for submission are located on the Fracchia Prize 2024 Entry Form (pdf), which must be downloaded and filled out. The form uses editable fields, and once filled out and saved on a local device the form should be sent to fracchiaprize@sfhistory.org.

Charles A. Fracchia (pronounced FROCK-ee-ya) was founder and President Emeritus of the San Francisco Historical Society.

PROMPT:

Shine a Light on San Francisco’s Leading Ladies: Movers, Shakers, and Change-Makers

Over time, San Francisco’s women have helped to shape the city in more ways than most people imagine. Our “leading ladies” include social activists, pioneers, poets,
political giants, entrepreneurs—and much more. Some are famous, while others are largely forgotten.

The 2024 Fracchia Prize invites any ninth – twelfth grade student attending school in San Francisco to write about local ladies who paved the way for progress, freedom, and innovation.

First Place: $2,500

Second Place: $1,500

Third Place: $1,000

Deadline for Submission: April 15th, 2024

Click Here for Application and Guidelines

All entries will be judged by a panel looking for strong research and writing skills, creative choice of topic, accurate information, and the possible use of primary and secondary sources. Winners and their history teachers will attend a special ceremony to receive their awards.

CASH PRIZE AWARDS!

First Place – $2,500 and publication of the work in The Argonaut and the SFHS website

Second Place – $1,500 and publication of the work in Panorama and the SFHS website

Third Place – $1,000 and publication of the work in Panorama and the SFHS website

All entries will be judged by a panel looking for strong writing skills, well-chosen monuments, accurate information, proper citations, and the possible use of primary and secondary sources.

Winners will attend a special ceremony to receive their awards.