New Haven Independent – May 12, 2026
Engineering and Science University Magnet School (ESUMS) students Titiladeolua Adeniran and Sahana Bhandary-Alexander recently won first place in a statewide competition for a documentary they made about a 19th-century civil rights quest.
They are next heading to Maryland to represent Connecticut at the National History Day competition.
New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) Supt. Madeline Negrón and members of the Board of Education congratulated the duo at last Monday’s Board of Education meeting held at King/Robinson School.
See below for a full press release sent out by NHPS on Monday announcing the news.
ESUMS Students Win State Championship at Connecticut History Day; Advance to Nationals
NEW HAVEN, CT – Engineering and Science University Magnet School (ESUMS) students Titiladeolua Adeniran and Sahana Bhandary-Alexander have won 1st Place in the Documentary Category at the Connecticut History Day state competition held at CCSU.
Their winning project, “A Trial of Principles: Prudence Crandall’s Case for Education and the Legal Foundation of American Civil Rights,” explores the 1833 struggle of schoolteacher Prudence Crandall to educate Black girls in Canterbury, CT. The documentary highlights how this local act of defiance laid the groundwork for the Fourteenth Amendment and the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision.
As state champions, Adeniran and Bhandary-Alexander will represent Connecticut at the National History Day competition at the University of Maryland, College Park, this June.
“Crandall’s struggle reminds us that progress is rarely immediate,” the students noted in their script. “Change begins with individuals who are willing to stand up to injustice, even when it’s unprecedented.”
This achievement highlights the academic versatility of ESUMS students, who consistently excel in both rigorous STEM fields and high-level historical research. “Titiladeolua and Sahana embody our school’s motto to ‘Imagine, Investigate, and Invent,’” said faculty adviser Eve Galanis. “We are incredibly proud to have them representing our school and our state on the national stage.”