What a privilege and what an honor it is to welcome everyone to the sixth annual roberta caro prize for literary excellence in history writing. Enter special guest, bob and his family come extended family, one of his grandchildren. We welcome distinguished members of the class of 53 were here to cheer on and never let him forget where you started. We are delighted bob, welcome. It is a real honor and privilege to have a scholarship so actively and selflessly involved. Six years ago when we had the opportunity to involve bob in the Academic Program here, who would have thought that the same gracious, open and honest soul we see on campus as an alum would bring that personality to the scholarship we wanted him to be a part of. This is a gentleman who has an opportunity have returned to be excellent on so many levels and yet robert e. Caro is no one to our students, class later that returned in a class act. They see or we have wonderful opportunity to also see something weve never seen before and theory will talk about a repeat of the paper in this year is a wordy. We also had the opportunity before the ceremony to surprise bob with our greatest honor for the academic to one of our favorite academics, bob studied history with the robert h. Caro and what an honor it is to add his name alongside ours forever. So if i may, id like to invite dairy bienstock into the table. Very work of bob to give us this which has become our most respected academic award and an award we are quite proud of involving the alum in so many thoughtful ways. Again to you coming to your wife in the family, welcome back. Berry, thank you. Come on out. [applause] if i could just echo toms greetings to all of you and thank everyone for attending this now sixth annual robert caro prize event. Every year gets bigger. Last year we had an ap reporter. This eerie documentary film crew. Next year, random spreading darkly. So no telling what will be in the future here. Unfortunately, sarah wont be eligible to write a third prizewinning paper, but we will see. Seven years ago when i first approached bob to establish an award in his name, i couldnt think of a better way of celebrating a remarkable career in which every conceivable award including the National Humanities medal bestowed by president obama. The strength of no better place to go if they want to understand the power that they shaped united states. Speaking of power come i encourage all of you to listen to the most recent book which was released by audible last month and im guessing many of you dont know it exists, but its an amazing memoir from the earliest days working on the record here at horace mann are the research and writing of who is funded books and i hope that is a hardcover copy of the future. Recently i was talking to the executive and artistic director of Carnegie Hall who told me when he arrived in new york city 12 years ago from london, he knew next to nothing about the city. I was told i have to read one book in the next day, the best possible introduction to understanding the year, appeared on his desk and not this, a miracle was invited to a dinner party where he ended up sitting next to bob and they became friends and told me this is a friendship that he cherishes. In fact, if you look at the brochure at the 2017 reporter 18 Carnegie Hall season can we use a picture illustrating the announcement of a new series on the 60s in the years that changed america inspired by pulitzer prizewinning author and journalist, robert h. Caro. Bob once mentioned to me that the price meant the most to him was awarded by the society of american historians and best exemplifies the union of the historian and the argus, which is why bob and i agree the price will be awarded to a Research Paper that blends literary excellence in the writing of history. Happily, the creation of the price increase the number of Semester Research essays to report how much they enjoy working on their papers. They feel sense of ownership about Research Topic spirit of the classic series the Research Papers have for example giving us insight into how the New York Times covered the holocaust, taught us about the devastating impact of the 1918 influenza academic in the 2005 prizewinning student Lindsey Nelson is back here today with us. Last years winner, someone asked for the cuban missiles crisis pitching trigger time that this year she wrote another prizewinning paper on American Relations in the 1970s. I noted last year that won the prize was first established i couldnt imagine how much it would mean to bob. And it would mean the world to students in the history department, but i couldnt imagine an historian thats received a possible accolade with all you our appreciation. Working closely has made me how much this award means not only to the winners are nice, to him. It also became abundantly clear last year when the interview with bob on the very first page said the robert caro prize is the nicest thing thats happened to him. We are grateful bobbies joining us this afternoon ms tom noted earlier, i now have the pleasure of teaching in the robert h. Caro classificatory classroom. In an email to me, said we are naming the cost of not only because of bob scholarly work but more importantly the work he continues to do with todays hs students. It will be an honor to teach there. So let me welcome bob. Id also like to welcome one of my history colleagues, David Bienstock is a faculty advisor to the School Newspaper for special records presentation. [applause] so, as the current advisor, there is actually four of us in the history department, we came across a copy of the record in which you were named 19521953 editorinchief. I would like to read from the article about it. Robert e. Caro has been chosen under chief of the record with a newspaper from an 18521953 school year. Caro is the record because of the domain work is done on this another school publications. One of the finest english students and writers in the class, bob has had several stories in manuscript. In addition a member of the manuscript award. On the back, the Editorial Board went on to say it is not without a great deal of thought that the record will at the School Newspaper next year chief of the record for the 195253 year we selected an outstanding journalist and his admirably equipped to handle the job. We are confident with the associate editor is a fine journalist imagination will produce a highquality next year. [applause] and they also found two from your Editorial Board. Number one is from september 29, 1952. It is a cartoon by ed koren, the new yorker cartoonist at the bottom. Theres a debate over who is the best man. The other one that stands out is out by stephenson [inaudible] those are two of your we thought youd appreciate that. Thank you. [applause] that makes today really nice. The picture of the three editors under that headline included jerry jones, who is the editor of the yearbook and it is so nice to have some of my classmates here today. I wanted to take a minute. This is a really happy day for me. I got an award or two and i would say to me, why dont you act happy . I said ill act happy if you want me to, but always feels like its happening to someone else so i never really excited about it. Giving this award really does make me happy. I will take a minute or two to tell you why. When horace first approached me six years ago and said they would like to name my honor, i said i would be really great if they gave award for something that i believe in. Mary asked me what i really wanted and i said, you know, all my life ive been trying to make people in the and come in trying make other writers senders and that the quality of the writing, it is just as important in nonfiction as it isnt fiction. We read so many history books, it seems like the only thing that matters to them seems like the only thing that mattered to the writer was to get all the facts then. One fact after another. There doesnt seem to be any understanding that things that matter in fiction, sense of place, rhythm of the words, arrangements in the paragraphs, that those things really matter in nonfiction, too because they are part of this doorway in history the story. If you want people to understand the story, you have to give them defending. He have to show them what its like. Just to give you an example of what im talking to you about, from the senate, if you are picking right, you let the reader understand something about the character and his reaction to that sending without having to give the lecture and stop the reader cold in its tracks. For example, Lyndon Johnson comes to washington as a secretary to her congressman. Hes 72 years old, very poor, can only carry a broad case and he doesnt in these going to work then i happened to find the woman who worked in the office with her. Had worked with him and 20s. Here is the theme and she told me about this scene she would see every morning. The Capitol Building is here. The library of congress is here. Lyndon johnson was in a little hotel down at the bottom of capitol hill. Near union station. A style is in a boarding house over here, so she they are both from texas so they get up very early. So they get up very early in the morning and she is walking in this direction and she would always see the same thing. The new johnson would come up the pool from the little hotel. Always be walking then suddenly in front of the capitol, they break into a run and run the length of the capital to the building on the other side. So she said, first i thought it was because i was with her and he didnt have a topcoat and he was told that he was running. But then, spring came and he still around. While im trying to show something about things about Lyndon Johnson right at this time. Was there a reason that he was running from the capital every morning. There is time after time and day after day i never saw anything in particular. We have never gone to sit there and look at the same time that Lyndon Johnson passed, which was only in the morning, 5 30 or 6 00. I decided to do that. There is something really different because the sun comes up. This is the east front facing part of the capital that faced the east front. The sun comes up in the east and that its very strongest as the came out, illuminated this whole long white front of the capitol and the figures send them eliminated and that there was the right side. He suddenly said yes, Lyndon Johnson is coming from the land where the buildings and most of what they called dog runs, two bedroom, two room log cabins. All of a sudden in friend, which is so magnificent and the white marble, he might not have even thought about it, but it touched him and showed him what he could achieve if he succeeded in this setting. So i wrote it that way. I always felt i didnt have to tell people so much about Lyndon Johnsons ambition, that they could see it in this one scene. That is something that i believe in, but ive always believed in. The idea is we are establishing the war that would help people do it in some way to inculcate students an understanding that you try to be doing, that you showed the sending of a room than the same that it occurs than and that is really an important. So this is really every year a really terrific day for me. So the fact that raising this day is special for me is because of the paper im giving the award to. As that happens, the first time the award has been given to the same person two years in a row. Last years paper, her paper last year was really good. This summer i started getting a couple of emails from sarah. She said her papers on sinoAmerican Relations since the nixon era to almost the present day. Im over in beijing interviewing diplomat because that is what robert caro would do. That sort of made me cry. Then she says, i recall that when they wouldnt give you interviews that she would stop asking him because thats what robert caro would do. That was really, i must say, extremely touching to me. But it was also something that not many human beings would do to have the person go over and get those interviews. It really made me think a lot of you. But of course the paper also has to be well written. Its a literary excellence in the writing of history. So when berry said that the paper was really well written, i had to wait and see, was a well written . In the days. Its a remarkable piece of work. A very complicated story and she tells a lot about nixon changing, opening up relations to china. Although it is complicated work, you never have to wonder whats happening because its all very clear and i understand how very hard it is to do Something Like that. So sarah, it is a real pleasure to award you the second year in a row that the prize subliterate excellence in the writing. Come on a. Up. [applause] thank you. [applause] high, everyone. I am sarah. Im going to start off by saying how honored i am to be here with all of you today. I remember where he met mr. Caro year. I told him that i wanted to study the history of the 1970s and i was going to go to china to do some research. The plan that i had back then was really hazy. I was going to visit shanghai, beijing and check our resources at different universities, but that was about it. What really struck me was mr. Caros reaction. He was incredibly encouraging and he encouraged me to pursue whatever topic i was interested in. So afterward, mr. Caro inspired me to actually go contacted and interviewed different american and chinese diplomats and professors and i can honestly say that my perspective on the topic has been fundamentally changed by all those interactions that ive had with the witness and diplomats. And i also remember mr. Caro saying that one of the reasons he studies political power is political power from 40, 50 or 60 years ago still affects all of our lives today. I always remember that because i think the ruling cap so its one of the reasons why people study history and white so important today. Of course i would like to thank mr. Caro because hes really an inspiration and its really inspired me in all of my time. I would also like to thank my mentor, mr. Livestock, it wouldnt have been possible without him. I would also like to thank everyone else that horace mann, my teachers, especially my history teacher, mr. Jacob, dr. Vail. Of course, dr. Kelly and all the other teachers at horace mann and everyone else whos made the event possible. I probably left out a lot of people, so i hope that is okay. I would also like to thank my parents because they have been year through the whole process, helped me practice for all the interviews that i tried to conduct with different people and supported me throughout everything. So, thank you. [applause] thank you comest eric, bob, perry and all of you who, to make today such as special in joyful occasion for horace mann, sierra coming to you and your family, we wish you well. We hope you come back. We hope you visit austin. Mom and dad, to the extended family, its a treat to have you here any time. We would love to have you back weather in the room are just the class of 53, we know we can pull the record at the evidence of each and every one of you during your time here. Thank you for honoring us with your presence. Jessica come into the administration, high school, dr. Levin steam, thank you. Have a good