Year 10 Merici College student Samantha Trafford has been crowned Australian Capital Territory Simpson Prize winner for the 2018 in an ANZAC based history competition against Year 9 and 10 students from around Australia.

As part of the Simpson Award, Samantha will be accompanied by Merici teacher Liza Laird to participate in an overseas tour to the Western Front in France for two weeks in April, including attendance at the Anzac Day Dawn Service at Villers-Bretonneux.  

The competition required a response to a quote and question that competitors then had to agree, debate or challenge from an individual, national and global perspective.

The 2018 Essay Question was “Some historians have described 1917 as “the worst year of the Great War” for Australia and Australians. To what extent is this assessment accurate?”. 

We look forward to catching up with Samantha and Liza after their trip.