On Saturday, April 30, twenty-four Birchwood students traveled
to Columbus to compete at the state level of the National
History Day competition. These students had placed in the top
three at the district competition and were competing with other
district winners from around the state. Birchwood’s students
had outstanding success at the competition. Against very strong
competition, eleven students qualified as National finalists and
will compete at the national competition in June at the University
of Maryland. Each category sends on two entries/finalists to the
national competition, as well as designating a national alternate.
In the historical paper category Birchwood claimed both finalist
spots: Hannah Y for her research on the Reykjavik Summit
between President Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev and Amir F
for his research on the Sam Sheppard murder case highlighting
conflicting Constitutional rights. In the group website category,
Birchwood also claimed the two finalist spots as well as the
national alternate spot. The finalists were: Clive C and Nate C
for their site on the debate between AC and DC electricity and
Joan C and Sachi G for their site on the Cuyahoga River fire.
National alternates were Ammar M and Darius Z for their site
on the Yalta Conference. In the individual documentary category,
Birchwood had a very strong showing. Dhweeja D qualified as
a national finalist for her research on Brown vs the Board of
Education. Claiming the national alternate spot was Prithvi P for
his presentation on the Treaty of Versailles. Earning an honorable
mention was Naomi W for her research on Jay’s Treaty. In the
group documentary category, Peter A and Shan S will advance
as finalists for their presentation on the Cuban Missile Crisis. In
the individual website category, Kavya R qualified as a finalist
for her site on Heliocentrism. In the individual exhibit category,
competing against approximately 35 other exhibits, Brad S
qualified as a national finalist for his board on the crossing of
the Rapido River in WWII. In the group performance category,
Trevor L and Abhijeet S were designated as national alternates
and Marla B and Sanjana R received an honorable mention.
Two special awards were also earned by Birchwood students.
Dhweeja D received an award from the Society of Ohio Archivists
in recognition of outstanding use of primary sources in a History
Day project. Sachi G and Joan C received an award from The
Ohio Historical Records Advisory Board for best use of Ohio’s
historical records in a History Day project. Please watch for all
these excellent projects and presentations at the Open House
in May. Congratulations to all these students and good luck at
the national competition in June!
