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Coral Springs Student Competes in National History Contest

by Sharon Aron Baron May 11, 2015

by Sharon Aron Baron May 11, 2015 18 views

Lorriane Angelakos

By: Sharon Aron Baron

A Coral Springs student has just been awarded first place at the 2015 Florida History Fair and will go on to compete in Maryland for the chance at a national title.

Lorraine Angelakos, a seventh grader at Forest Glen Middle School took home the prize in Tallahassee on May 5 in the Junior Individual Exhibit category for her entry “Making a Splash Into Jacques Cousteau’s Leadership.” She will now go on to compete in the The Kenneth E. Behring National History Day contest which will take place June 14 – 18 on the campus of the University of Maryland.

“I cannot wait to take on D.C.,” said Lorraine. “It has been a dream to get there since I competed last year and did not win at States.”

Lorraine was originally inspired for this year’s competition by her history teacher Mrs. Bates who made the History Fair competition a school assignment last year. Lorraine was lucky to win the school competition last year and she also placed first at Broward County, but did not place at the state level.

This year, the 7th grade class did not participate in the History Fair contest but Lorraine, with permission from her teacher, worked on her research during her free time and competed against the other classes at her school to go on to win the school competition again.

“The Principal, Mr. Forsman and all the faculty have all been very supportive and encouraging to help keep her momentum up,” her mother Nicole told us.

Lorraine started her research over the summer beginning with a Skype interview with Fabien Cousteau, grandson of famed oceanographic explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau. Lorraine refers to Cousteau as “an incredible person who is still inspiring others to follow in his footsteps.”

She also received email interviews from Dr. Sylvia Earle who was the first female Aquanaut, along with Astronaut Steven Smith who all assisted her with their first-hand research of her topic of Jacques Cousteau.

Besides history, Lorraine enjoys dancing and competing in Greek Folk competitions, playing soccer for both the City and for Forest Glen Middle, and she is a member of the National Junior Honor Society, is the 7 th Grade Vice President, and is currently running to be the 8th Grade President. Her parents are Peter and Nicole and she has a sister Victoria, 21, who are all long-time residents of Coral Springs.

This history buff may even have a future in politics one day here in Coral Springs.

“I want to become a lawyer and then go into politics.”

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Sharon Aron Baron

Editor of Talk Media and writer for Coral Springs Talk. CST was created in 2012 to provide News, Views, and Entertainment for the residents of Coral Springs and the rest of South Florida.