Local students present projects at Vermont History Day competition
Lori Morse | June 11, 2020
Sadie McKibben’s exhibit ”Edward Weston: Crushing the Expectations for Immigrants in the Late 1800s” won best Junior Individual Exhibit in this year’s Vermont History day.
A number of local students recently participated in the annual Vermont History Day competition conducted entirely online due to the COVID-19 virus precautions.
Vermont History Day is the state affiliate of National History Day, a program in which more than a half a million middle and high school students participate annually.
Students conduct original research on historical topics related to a yearly theme. They then create projects in one of five categories: paper, exhibit, documentary, performance, and website. Projects can be done individually or in groups, with middle school students in the Junior division and high school students in the Senior division.
Students who place first or second in their state contest may qualify to compete in the national competition. The theme for this year was “Breaking Barriers in History.”
This year’s contest presented some unique challenges given that students were not attending school in person due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Students completed projects that they had begun before in-person classes ended in late March. Many needed to find creative ways to work with teachers and mentors to finish research, create, and submit entries. Judging also was done remotely, with judging groups meeting virtually to discuss and score student projects.
Winning projects were announced during an online ceremony on May 8.
Over the past few years, students at Crossett Brook and Harwood Middle Schools have competed, with a number qualifying for, and attending, the national contest in Maryland.
This year saw fewer students compete, but more than 200 still persevered and participated in Vermont History Day.
Here are the local students who competed this year, along with their project title and category.
Hadley Andersen - “Valentina Tereshkova, Orbiting Over the Sex Barrier” - Junior Individual Exhibit
Hazel Lillis, Julia Thurston, and Maya Hynes - “Fight Like A Girl: Two Women who Revolutionized Sports” - Junior Group Documentary
Sadie McKibben -”Edward Weston: Crushing the Expectations for Immigrants in the Late 1800s” - Junior Individual Exhibit
Jeswin Antony - “The Troublemaker who Broke Down Apartheid” - Senior Individual Website (Jeswin is a Harwood High School student who started participating while at CBMS.)
Jeswin Antony’s website “The Troublemaker who Broke Down Apartheid” won first place for Senior Individual Website in this year’s Vermont History Day competition.
Sadie placed first in her category and qualified for Nationals. Jeswin placed first in his category and qualified for Nationals -- the third straight year that he has won for Individual Website! Hazel, Julia, and Maya placed third in their category.
To learn more about the program, check out the National History Day website.
To see some of the projects from Vermont History Day, a list of winning projects, and a recording of the Virtual Awards Ceremony, visit the VHD website.
Former Crossett Brook Middle School social studies teacher Lori Morse coached many of her students for Vermont History Day competitions over the years. She now volunteers as a judge with the event.