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As she turns 21, Taylor Swift considers one of the most gratifying years a solo artist has ever had, and ponders her future.

She appears in Jewish, Christian and Muslim sacred texts, and is known for her journey to Jerusalem to test King Solomon’s wisdom. Did the Queen of Sheba really exist, or is she only a myth? Modern-day historians and archaeologists have different theories.

Jane Goodall’s work as a primatologist laid the groundwork for how primates, namely chimpanzees, are studied. Goodall’s lack of formal training in the beginning of her career helped her to record what she experienced among the chimps on a truly organic level.

Along with his trademark cigar and bristly mustache, Mark Twain has long been remembered for his signature wit, his colorful characters and colloquialisms and his willingness to explore issues that many of the writers of his time politely ignored.

Politician, statesman, military officer, historian and writer, Winston Churchill is one of the most influential figures in modern history. He is most renowned for his leadership of Britain during World War II, when his famed oratory and steadfast defiance to tyranny helped inspire Britain and its allies to victory.

Lauren Pressley is the instructional design librarian at the Z. Smith Reynolds Library at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C. In addition to her role as a librarian, Pressley is an author, a blogger and a frequent presenter.

Champion of the imagination, devout Christian and feminist, Madeleine L’Engle changed the lives and hearts of many with her books. “A writer of fantasy, fairy tale, or myth must inevitably discover that he is not writing out of his own knowledge or experience, but out of something both deeper and wider,” she explained when accepting her Newbery Medal.

American composer Scott Joplin, the “King of Ragtime,” composed dozens of legendary ragtime songs in the late 1800s and early 1900s, including such iconic pieces as “Maple Leaf Rag” and “The Entertainer.”

Romain de Tirtoff made his way to Paris in 1912 and established himself as the acclaimed fashion illustrator Erté. In addition to producing more than 250 prints for Harper’s Bazaar, Erté worked as a lithographer and painter, and a costume, set and furniture designer. He has been called the “Father of Art Deco” for his influence on art and design in the 20th century.

John F. Kennedy’s assassination was a grave turning point in the vibrant era of the 1960s, shocking even to those that disagreed with the young president’s policies. In honor of Nov. 22, 1963, we offer sites detailing the Kennedy era, the foreign policy mishaps and milestones, and the legacy of this short-lived political figure.


FindingEducation met up with Elizabeth Devine at the annual National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) conference in Atlanta, Ga., in November 2009. At the conference, Devine was named as one of the NCSS Outstanding Secondary Social Studies Teachers of the Year for 2009-2010. She also hosted a panel focused on helping teachers integrate the study of human rights into their curriculum.

Tennis star Billie Jean King spent her career campaigning for gender equality in sports. Her win in 1973’s highly publicized “Battle of the Sexes” match helped to legitimize women’s athletics in the eyes of the world.

Kurt Vonnegut was known worldwide as a humorist, a humanist and for his use of black comedy in his writing.

Famous for the Code of Hammurabi, a symbol of the Mesopotamian civilization, Hammurabi was a Babylonian king and the sixth ruler of the Amorite dynasty. He is revered today as one of the great rulers and lawgivers of ancient times.

Known as the “Scourge of God” thanks to the destruction he brought upon the Roman Empire, Attila was a fifth-century warrior and king of the Huns. Though his name has become synonymous with savagery, his leadership principles are still admired today.

As the president of Hearst Magazines, Cathie Black was instrumental in the development and branding of popular magazines as Esquire, Harper's Bazaar and Cosmopolitan. After a successful career in the private sector, Black will face new challenges as the chancellor of the New York City public school system.

Milton Bradley is a household name for his creation of such board game classics as The Game of Life, but he was more than just an inventor. His fascination with the process of learning, coupled with his skill at printing, made him a pioneer in the field of early childhood education as well.

Cammi Granato was America’s first female hockey star, starring on the U.S. national team for 15 years and leading the team to gold in the 1998 Olympics, a victory that inspired girls in all parts of the country to begin playing hockey. For her record-breaking career and her efforts popularizing the women’s game, Granato will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday.

The first woman in France to receive a doctorate degree, scientist Marie Curie is remembered for her discoveries in radioactivity and radioactive elements. Her work won her two Nobel prizes in physics and chemistry, but unfortunately also led to her death.

John Philip Sousa is the American composer behind such marching band classics as “The Stars and Stripes Forever” and “Semper Fidelis.”

Eugene V. Debs spearheaded labor movements, led the American Socialist Party and is remembered today for being an agitator who never shied from passionately expressing his opinions—even when it led to his arrest.

To his colleagues, he was “Old Iron Pants,” and to everyone else, he was “The Most Trusted Man in America.” For more than half a century, CBS newsman Walter Cronkite reported, and to a certain extent, made the news, announcing Kennedy’s assassination and the first steps on the moon as well as influencing a more rapid end to the Vietnam War.

Economist and philosopher Amartya Sen has been called the “Mother Teresa of economics” for helping improve the lives on the poor through his work in welfare economics and the study of famines.

As the forceful and charismatic king of Macedonia, Alexander the Great overthrew the Persian Empire, laying the foundation for the Hellenistic period. He became a hero of legends that would survive centuries after his death.

Osamu Tezuka has been called the “god of comics” in Japan. After writing his first comic strip in third grade, Tezuka published his first professional manga while studying at medical school. His innovations to the field of Japanese comics and animation are evident through the 700 works he produced, which include more than 150,000 pages of manga.

The most beautiful daughter of the Austrian emperor, Marie Antoinette was guaranteed a life of privilege. But as the teen bride of French King Louis XVI, her free spending, decadent lifestyle angered the working class, who saw her as the embodiment of all that was wrong with the monarchy.

At the National Council for the Social Studies conference in November 2009, the Carter G. Woodson Book Awards honored Dr. Robert H. Mayer for his book, “When the Children Marched: The Birmingham Civil Rights Movement.” Mayer was recognized for “accurately and sensitively” portraying an issue related to ethnic minorities.

Although he is considered one of the most influential writers of the 20th century, Stephen Crane’s life and career were cut short before his 30th birthday. His books, essays and poems—the best known of which was “The Red Badge of Courage”—remain among the most revered and referenced today.

Romualdo Pacheco, born Oct. 31, 1831, was the first Hispanic representative of a state in Congress and to date, California’s only Latino governor.

Greg Mortenson is known around the world for the promise he made to the people of a remote Pakistani village. That promise grew to become his life’s mission: to build schools for children.