The three-student team representing Madison Metropolitan School District’s Spring Harbor Middle School, comprised of eighth-graders Teresa Ketarkus and Makai Moore and seventh-grader Elias Ketchum, took home the top honor at the 100 Black Men of America’s 2025 African American History Academic Challenge (AAHAC) June 5-6 during the organization’s 39th Annual Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Spring Harbor, located on Madison’s West Side, also won the national championship in 2018. They competed against 14 teams from around the country and emerged as national champions after advancing through a rigorous, multi-tiered competition that began this winter.
The African American History Academic Challenge is an annual contest for middle school and high school students in a quiz show format, where students are asked questions from a prominent African-American history book. The AAHAC is an educational program designed to enhance the appreciation and study of African American history and culture. During the competition, students buzz in and must provide an answer to a question within a 10-second limit and compete in round-robin-style tournaments.
The winning team was coached by Sara Leuthold, an 8th-grade humanities teacher at Spring Harbor, who was also the coach of the school’s 2018 national championship team.
“Watching these students grow throughout the year and bring home this incredible win was beyond inspiring,” Leuthold said in a statement. “Their work ethic, curiosity and commitment to deepening their understanding of African American history made them stand out at every stage of the competition.”
(Photo by David Dahmer)
The students spent six months preparing for the competition by studying “Black History 365: An Inclusive Account of American History,” by Joel Freeman and Walter Milton, Jr. Spring Harbor swept five challenging preliminary rounds on June 5, and dominated the final round the following day, not allowing their opponents to score a single point.
A signature event of the 100 Black Men of America Annual Conference, the AAHAC is designed to foster academic excellence and cultural awareness, inviting middle and high school students from across the country to showcase their knowledge of African American history in a competitive quiz-bowl format.
“Our students’ success speaks to what’s possible when we invest in youth leadership, historical literacy and culturally relevant learning experiences,” said Dr. Angie Hicks, MMSD’s associate superintendent of middle schools. “We’re so proud of Teresa, Makai, Elias, and Ms. Leuthold, and grateful to 100 Black Men for creating this opportunity.”
