English teacher Adele Mazurek-Suslick (far right) with eight of her freshman students whose essays were published in the January issue of Illinois History magazine. First row from left: Vivian Hagerty, Or Ashkenazi. Second row from left (kneeling): Aishwarya Gautam, Jamie Blue. Third row from left: Marina Shah, Leah Malkovich, Christina Harden, Sarah Heffley. Gargoyle photo by David Porreca (click to enlarge)

URBANA — Eight freshman students of English teacher Adele Mazurek-Suslick have been published in Illinois History magazine.

The students wrote essays on the theme of women in Illinois history; the articles appear in the magazine's January issue. The published articles were among 26 selected from student submissions from across the state.

The freshmen and their essays are:

• Or Ashkenazi, "Mary Ann Ball Bickerdyke"
• Jamie Blue, "Elizabeth Robinson"
• Aishwarya Gautam, "Louise de Koven Bowen"
• Vivian Hagerty, "India Edwards"
• Christina Harden, "Mary Agnes Chase"
• Sarah Heffley, "Mary Margaret Bartelme"
• Leah Malkovich, "Julia Lathrop-Shorter"
• Marina Shah, "Ruth Bryan Owen Rohde"

The Uni students are now in contention for the title of Student Historian of the Year. Fourteen young people receive that honor each year in recognition of their Illinois History articles. Last year, then-juniors Rob Diehl and Brian Wang were among those named Student Historians.

Illinois History, an online magazine that showcases student essays, is published three times during the school year by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency.

Two more issues are scheduled for this year: one on Abraham Lincoln (February) and the other on local historical societies and local historical museums (April).

The magazine asks students to research their topics in depth and limit their writing to between 500 and 1,000 words. Essays chosen for publication can be accessed in full at the Illinois History site and from the links found below and within this article.