Missouri students received major prizes at the National History Day contest June 9-13 in College Park, Maryland, including being selected for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History exhibit showcase in Washington D.C. A half million students globally completed projects during the past school year on the theme, Turning Points in History. Sixty-eight students who received first and second place rankings at the Missouri History Day competition competed at the national contest held on the campus of the University of Maryland.
A Crestview Middle School student from Baldwin, Yoga Maheshwar Reddy Boddapati, received the History of Place Prize sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities for his paper, "The Berlin Airlift: A Turning Point in the Cold War."
The White House History Prize was awarded to Lydia Tyndall, a homeschool student from Brookline Station in Greene County for her performance, “An Immense Responsibility: How Harry S. Truman's Steadfast Beliefs Led to a Global Turning Point."
The Untold Stories in History Prize, also sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities, went to Rohan Deshpande of Marquette Senior High School in Chesterfield, for his documentary, "Buttons, Baby Teeth and Bombs: The St. Louis Baby Tooth Project."
Two Outstanding Entry Awards for Missouri were awarded to Mid-Buchanan Elementary students Riley Fetters and Camy McGinley of Faucett for their documentary, "9/11: A Turning Point in Anti-Terrorism."
Sumner High School student Romell Calhoun of St. Louis, received the Outstanding Entry Award for his exhibit, "When They Finally Listened: The Genius of Joseph Blair." Calhoun’s exhibit was also selected and shown at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.
“This is my first time in Washington, D.C. and to be here at a Smithsonian museum with my project is amazing,” said Calhoun. “The best part of the History Day contest is meeting new people and discovering that the world is a lot bigger with much to explore. I never knew how much I could be drawn to history and how fascinating it can be.”
National History Day in Missouri is sponsored and organized by the State Historical Society of Missouri. Each year, NHD students compete in five project categories, including documentary, exhibit, performance, paper and website. The contest is open to public, private or homeschool students, grades 6-12, who are sponsored by a teacher, guardian or mentor. Over 5,000 students in grades 6–12 participate in this annual program, with nearly 500 students advancing to the state contest in April. For more information, visit nhdmo.org.