Birchwood students had a wonderful showing at the district level of the National History Day competition held at Case Western Reserve University on Saturday, March 13. With many outstanding projects, 22 students will be moving on to the state competition in Columbus on April 24. In the paper category, Sam Z took first place with his paper on the Gatling Gun. Sam also received a special award from the Cleveland Grays which recognized outstanding projects on military history. Amir F received a second place award for his paper on Garrett Morgan, a notable Clevelander who invented the gas mask and traffic light. In addition, Amir received the Bicentennial Award, along with a generous cash prize, sponsored by Cuyahoga County in honor of the county’s 200th anniversary, given to an outstanding entry related to the county’s history.
Birchwood students swept the website category. Kavya R placed first with her website on the Bill of Rights. She also received an award from the Sons of the American Revolution recognizing an outstanding entry from the Revolutionary War era. Nathan C earned second place with his website on Alan Freed, the Cleveland deejay who popularized rock-n-roll. Earning third place was Lulu S with her focus on the Northwest Ordinance.
In the performance categories, Birchwood students again put on stellar performances. With her individual performance on Samuel Morse and the invention of the telegraph, Nardine T placed first. Placing second with her performance on Alexander Graham Bell’s invention of the telephone was Christine B. In the group performance category, Trevor L and Sanjana R placed first with an engaging performance on the topic of Yellow Journalism and Clare P and Zaeem M placed second with an excellent performance on the Marshall Plan.
In the documentary categories, 11 students will be advancing to the state competition. Susmita R placed first for her individual documentary on the discovery of DNA. Ben W took second for his documentary on the invention of the printing press. Earning an honorable mention was Hassan S for his presentation on the invention of the Apple II. Prithvi P earned a special award from the Cleveland Grays for his documentary on Blitzkrieg. In the group documentary category, Sarah D and Hannah Y placed first with their presentation on the Cleveland Metroparks. Placing second were Zach I, Deepak K, and Mohammed M for their project on the discovery of the polio vaccine by Jonas Salk. Earning an honorable mention for their documentary on the Russian Revolution were Shawki A, Grant F, and Miguel P.
Five students received special recognition, along with generous cash awards, from the Early
Settlers Association of the Western Reserve. These awards are given for excellent projects on topics related to Western Reserve history. Receiving these awards were Amir F, Lulu S, Nathan C, Carlf C for his website on Charles Hall, the discoverer of an efficient aluminum processing method, and Alexander I for his website on Paul Brown, the innovative football coach.
In addition, Connie Miller received the Teacher of Merit award from the Ohio Humanities Council and will be recognized at the state competition in April.
Congratulations to everyone and good luck in Columbus!
