Pleasant Valley Middle School 8th graders Kira Wilson (left) and Amelia DeMoss (right) placed first in the Junior Group Performance category

After top finishes at the Southwest Washington regional National History Day competition, 21 students from Battle Ground Public Schools’ middle schools have advanced to the state round to be held on May 1. Each round of the competition (regional, state and national) will be held virtually this year. 

“I am proud of the hard work and determination shown by students within the novel remote learning structure during a pandemic,’ said Beth Doughty, history and English Language Arts teacher at Chief Umtuch Middle School. “It was a lot to manage, and it is a testament to their efforts and the fact that students still gained content knowledge and skills despite the atypical learning structure.”

National History Day is a dynamic program that encourages students to become historians by developing research, analysis, presentation and social skills. Students select a topic related to an annual national theme and work individually or in groups to conduct extensive historical research using primary and secondary sources. 

This year’s theme is “Communication in History: The Key to Understanding.” Based on this theme, the students conducted research and analysis before developing projects such as research papers, performances, documentaries, websites, and more. 

The Chief Umtuch Middle School students advancing to state are:

• Ruth Sprenger and Jules Staley, 1st Place in the Group Documentary category for "Social Impact of The First Women in English Theater"
• Tova Orth and Ava Dhanens, 2nd Place in the Group Documentary category for  "Radium Advertising and Industry in the 1900s"
• Isaiah Rogers and Sterling Sutton, 3rd Place in the Group Documentary category for "Paul C. Fisher's Space Pen" 
• Tori Rehwaldt, 1st Place in the Individual Paper category for "Der Ewige Jude"
• Duncan Clark, 2nd Place in the Individual Website category for "McCarthyism: The Story of How One Senator's Words Changed Our Nation Forever"

The Pleasant Valley Middle School students advancing to state are:

• Judah Bullock, 1st Place in the Junior Individual Exhibit category for “Miscommunication in Word and Deed: Key to Understanding the Nez Perce Tribe's Century of Loss”
• Amelia DeMoss and Kira Wilson, 1st Place in the Junior Group Performance category for “Clarity, Quantity, Focus: Key to Understanding How the Federalist Papers Convinced the States to Ratify the Constitution”
• Lilly Roman-Myers and Kaylie O'Lear, 1st Place in the Junior Group Exhibit category for “Cesar Chavez: Strikes, Fasts, and Boycotts to Empower the Powerless”
• Amelia Olson, 1st Place in the Junior Individual Website category for “Trial and Error, Collaboration, Bribery, and the Telegraph: Key to Understanding”
• Jake Drogos, 2nd Place in the Individual Documentary category for “Sacagawea Translating, Guiding, and Communicating Peace: Key to the Success of the Lewis and Clark Expedition 1804-1806”
• Abigail Dubinskiy, Alissa Huynh, Kristina Goldonov, and Layla Segovia, 3rd Place in the Group Exhibit category for “The March from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama: How the March Shamed the U.S. in World Opinion and Led to the Passing of the 1965 Voting Rights Bill”
• Ethan Heaps, 3rd Place in the Individual Documentary category for "I Have a Dream"

And finally, the River HomeLink student advancing to state is:

• Aubree Carroll, 2nd Place in the Junior Individual Exhibit category for “How Betsy Wade Influenced Change for Women”

Links to the above students' projects are posted on the BGPS district website at https://www.battlegroundps.org/bgps-students-advance-to-state-in-national-history-day-competition/.

The National History Day organization and its state affiliate, Washington History Day, provide leading-edge training and curriculum materials to help educators meet and exceed education standards.