Savannah, GA, November 3 – The Georgia Historical Society (GHS) is pleased to announce that Dr. Joseph Nichols and Alyssa Ignaczak of Saint Louis University have been awarded the 2026 John C. Inscoe Award for their article, “Help Our Public Education (HOPE), Concerned Motherhood, and Integrating Atlanta’s Public Schools,” published in Volume 109, Number 4 of the Georgia Historical Quarterly (GHQ) in 2025. The Inscoe Award recognizes the best article published in the Quarterly during the previous year.
Nichols is an associate professor in Saint Louis University’s School of Education, and Ignaczak is a doctoral candidate in Education Policy and Equity at the university. Their award-winning article examines the politics of motherhood and the role of White moderates in Atlanta’s school desegregation through a study of Help Our Public Education (HOPE). HOPE, a grassroots organization, was formed largely by White mothers in Atlanta in 1958 to keep public schools open amid threats of closure under segregationist policies.
Established in 2018, the Inscoe Award honors Dr. John C. Inscoe, Albert B. Saye Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Georgia and former editor of the Georgia Historical Quarterly from 1989 to 2000. The award is presented annually to the author of the best article published in the GHQ during the previous year and includes a cash prize supported by an endowment in Dr. Inscoe’s honor.
Published by the Georgia Historical Society since 1917, the Georgia Historical Quarterly is widely recognized as one of the nation’s leading state historical journals, featuring scholarly articles on Georgia and American history, book reviews, edited primary sources, oral histories, and essays by and about contemporary history-makers.
For more information about the John C. Inscoe Award, or for information about how to subscribe to the Georgia Historical Quarterly, please contact Keith Strigaro, Director of Public Relations and Communications, at 912.651.2125, ext. 153, or by email at kstrigaro@georgiahistory.com.
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