News

Oakcrest Hosts Eighth Annual Most Courageous American Competition

Oakcrest held the final round of the eighth annual Most Courageous American Competition this Thursday. This year’s finalists were George Washington, presented by the seventh grade, and Mike Murphy, supported by the eighth grade. 

The Most Courageous American Competition is a beloved Middle School tradition that was begun by Oakcrest history teacher Cecilia Escobar. The competition puts figures from American history into a March Madness-style bracket. Each week, seventh and eighth grade students debate in class over the virtues of the candidates on the list, and after hearing arguments they vote on two figures to advance to the next round. In the final round of the tournament, seventh and eighth grade representatives make presentations to the entire school about why their top candidate should be considered the Most Courageous American. Students then decide who should be awarded the title in a schoolwide vote. 

Seventh grade students Meghan Duncan and Madeline McDonnell gave a speech highlighting George Washington’s life and character. “Washington showed courage through the battles he commanded and the country he served. [He] persevered through all the burdening challenges, testing his physical strength and moral values and principles,” Meghan and Madeline stated. 

In the eighth grade, Annie Howard, Mary Mehan, and Mary White made the case for  Mike Murphy, a United States Navy SEAL officer who was killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan in 2005 and posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. “Mike’s heroic actions will forever be honored in the hearts of all Americans. We pray that we will be able to face the challenges of life with the same selflessness and bravery that he did,” Annie said during their speech. 

 After hearing from both sides, the entire school cast their votes and chose Mike Murphy as this year’s Most Courageous American. 

The Most Courageous American Competition not only teaches Oakies how to research, argue persuasively and present publicly, but also encourages students to consider what it means to be a man or woman of virtue. History teacher, Ginny Boles, notes that although the many candidates come from a wide range of backgrounds and served their country in many different ways, they possessed the same core virtues. 

She says, “What they all had in common was that they had vision and integrity. Vision— they saw the right thing to do, and then they had the personal integrity, to live and act to achieve that right thing to do.” 


Back
    • The 8th grade students make their case for Mike Murphy

    • 7th grade students giving their speech for George Washington

    • This year's winner

1619 Crowell Road, Vienna, VA 22182
703-790-5450