After months of intensive research and success at district and county-level competitions, champions were recognized at the 2017 National History Day—California state competition on May 7 at William Jessup University in Rocklin. The Sacramento County Office of Education (SCOE) coordinates National History Day in California. More than 1,400 students participated in the state event, coming from 272 schools across 29 counties.
Winners from Sacramento County
Of the 64 students (36 projects) selected to advance to the national competition, two are from Sacramento County.
- Anne-Sophie Lacombe
Sacramento Country Day School
“Kill De Guy Wot Sells De Xtras”—The Newsboys Strike of 1899
Junior Division, Individual Performance
Teacher: Chris Kuipers - Lea Han
Folsom Middle School (Folsom Cordova Unified)
Chiune Sugihara: A Japanese Counsel Who Took a Stand Against His Government
Junior Division, Historical Paper
Teachers: Melissa Lawson and Mary Golden
Sacramento County students Ashrith Beeravelli and Siddhartha Poddar (Mather Heights Elementary, Folsom Cordova Unified, Teacher Sarah Kirby-Gonzalez) were also congratulated for being runners-up in the elementary division.
National History Day
Each fall, more than 600,000 students nationwide begin the year-long National History Day program. Students start by creating classroom projects, then some advance to compete in a series of history contests that progress from the district level to the county, then on to a statewide competition. Participating students choose their own topic of study and connect it to a theme. This year’s theme was “Taking a Stand in History.”
National History Day participants research historic documents and artifacts, conduct oral histories, search the Internet and libraries for information on their topic, and travel to historic sites. They present their work in a variety of ways including: museum-type exhibits, documentaries, websites, original performances, posters, or traditional research papers. In California, more than 40,000 students participate in National History Day each year.
The 2017 national competition takes place this summer in Maryland, June 10–15.