Seventy-three students qualified to represent Tennessee at National History Day later this summer. Those students placed first or second in their categories at Tennessee History Day held in Nashville on Saturday. History Day is a competition in which high school and middle school students compete by submitting projects about people and events of historical significance.
Participants enter projects in one of five categories: documentaries, exhibits, performances, websites, and papers. While projects must relate to the annual theme, students were encouraged to be creative when choosing their topics. This year’s theme was “Taking a Stand.” One hundred and seven students received medals for their efforts, 20 students were awarded special prizes and two educators were recognized as teachers of the year Saturday.
National History Day will be held June 11 through June 15 on the University of Maryland campus in College Park, Md.
“I am certain that the students who are advancing to the competition in Maryland will represent Tennessee well,” Secretary of State Tre Hargett said. “I hope all of Saturday’s participants gained a lot from the experience. Studies have shown that students who participate in History Day learn skills that can benefit them during their academic careers and even later in life after they enter the workforce. Also, History Day participants tend to be more involved in civic activities after they reach adulthood.”
“I am proud of all our students,” added Tennessee History Day Coordinator Jennifer C. Core. “I'm impressed by how they turn themselves into experts on their selected topics and how they incorporate constructive feedback into each revision of their projects. They are learning how to examine sources critically and how to present their findings to a sophisticated audience.”
The judges at Saturday’s competition – including university professors, graduate students, high school teachers, librarians, archivists, and other public historians – picked the winners from 154 submitted projects. The Tennessee Historical Society coordinates Tennessee History Day with the support of the Tennessee Department of State, Humanities Tennessee, First Tennessee Foundation, the Memorial Foundation, and the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.
Since 1974, History Day has grown from a small local competition in Cleveland, Oh. with about 100 students, into an event that attracts about a half million students nationwide each year. For more information about the program in Tennessee, visit the National History Day website or contact Jennifer Core at 615-741-8934 or via e-mail at historyday@tennesseehistory.org.
The medal winners from Saturday’s Tennessee History Day competition are:
JUNIOR INDIVIDUAL DOCUMENTARY
1st
Dissidents of Rebellion: The Hidden Stand and Sacrifice of the East Tennessee Bridge Burners
Tate Greene
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Nicole Whitecotton
2nd
Branch Rickey
Caden Varner
Grace Christian Academy, Franklin
Teacher: Bruce Anliker
3rd
Taking a Stand With Art: How the Harlem Renaissance Affected the Civil Rights Movement
Olivia Larsen
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Nicole Whitecotton
JUNIOR GROUP DOCUMENTARY
1st
Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds: Faith, Family, Friends, Freedom
Paige Frady, Jaylin Viviano, Chase Hagler
Lake Forest Middle School, Cleveland
Teacher: Julie Mitchell
2nd
Frederick Douglass: Taking a Stand for Equal Rights
Shelby McNeal, Ailcy McGill
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Liz Shugart
3rd
John Brown: Taking a Stand Against Slavery
Ty Shearon, Bruce Stracener, Eli, Worsham
Jo Byrns Middle School, Cedar Hill
Teacher: Rachel Williams
SENIOR INDIVIDUAL DOCUMENTARY
1st
The East Tennessee Bridge Burners: Lincolnites Taking a Stand
Grant Smith
McCallie School, Chattanooga
Teacher: Duke Richey
2nd
The Bijou Theatre: Taking a Stand for Equality
Jared Watkins
L&N STEM Academy, Knoxville
Teacher: Karen Stanish
3rd
The Patriotic Pioneer: Cornelia Fort's Stand for Women in Aviation
Lenora Upchurch
Watertown High School, Watertown
Teacher: Jason Knowles
SENIOR GROUP DOCUMENTARY
1st
Developing From the Negatives: The Pictures That Ended Child Labor in America
Swati Kinger, Reethu Krishnan
Collierville High School, Collierville
Teacher: Michelle Martin
2nd
American Women's Dress Reform 1850-1920
Sana Nisar, Katie Millican, Isabel Hester, Jadyn Mattews, Olivia Hoodenpyle
Girls Preparatory School, Chattanooga
Teachers: Caroline Carlin, Ralph Covino
3rd
The Coal Creek Saga: When Miners Stood up for their Labor Rights
Zachary Medley, Abigail Wells, Alexandra Lee
L&N STEM Academy, Knoxville
Teachers: Derek Griffin, Tressie Norton
JUNIOR INDIVIDUAL EXHIBIT
1st
Bread and Roses: The Lawrence Textile Strike of 1912
Samuel Klein
Pi Beta Phi Elementary School, Gatlinburg
Teacher: Cindy Flynn
2nd
Anne Dallas Dudley: Standing Up for Women's Rights
Sarah Davis
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Liz Shugart
3rd
Sons of Liberty Stance for Freedom and Independence
Grace Ene
West Creek Middle School, Clarksville
Teacher: Michael Cleghorn
JUNIOR GROUP EXHIBIT
1st
The Match That Sparked a Flame: The Tiananmen Square Protest of June 4, 1989
Ella Tubbs, Alison Dropp, Becca Lilly, Colin Anderson
Spring Station Middle School, Thompsons Station
Teacher: Christopher Harrod
2nd
Betty Friedan's Stand in Changing "Her"story: A Woman's Fight Against the "Feminine Mystique"
Tia Dyson, Trinity McKinney, Maria Murshed, Aaliyah Winston
Memphis Rise Academy, Memphis
Teacher: Amanda Villani
3rd
Taking a Stand in the 1919 Race Riots
Haylin Ownby, Kaylei Malone
New Center Elementary School, Sevierville
Teacher: Christy Valentine
SENIOR INDIVIDUAL EXHIBIT
1st
From Prisoner to Patient: Dorothea Dix Taking a Stand for the Mentally Ill
Whitley Hoffner
Pigeon Forge High School, Pigeon Forge
Teacher: Karen Kelley
2nd
Still Standing: Rex Richey and the Fight Against Bootlegging in Tennessee
Duke Richey
McCallie School, Chattanooga
Teacher: Duke Richey
3rd
Myles Horton: Taking A Stand Through Education
Brittani Mays
Clarksville High School, Clarksville
Teacher: Whitney Joyner
SENIOR GROUP EXHIBIT
1st
Anne Hutchinson: Religious Rebel
Hyatt Christenberry, Molly Miller, Aruha Khan, Madison Jackson
L&N STEM Academy, Knoxville
Teacher: Derek Griffin
2nd
Sophie Scholl: Laws Change, Conscience Doesn't
Roiha Iqbal, Ayah Mohammad, Nadine Mohammad, Maya Salem
Pleasant View School, Memphis
Teacher: Robert Schueller
3rd
Coal Operators and Evicted Miners in the Paint Creek-Cabin Creek Coal Strike of 1912
Will Klein, Emerson Wright
McCallie School, Chattanooga
Teacher: Duke Richey
JUNIOR INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE
1st
When One Monk Stood
Eli Harrison
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Nicole Whitecotton
2nd
Kings Mountain. Taking a stand against the British
Gabe Tipton
John Sevier Middle School, Kingsport
Teacher: John Mallick
3rd
Dolly Parton: Taking a Stanza in History
Eden Carnes
Carnes Homeschool, Friendsville
Teacher: Elithe Carnes
JUNIOR GROUP PERFORMANCE
1st
Lowell Mill Girls: The First Union of Working Women
Hannah Robbins, Eden Hutchinson, Isabella Miya
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Nicole Whitecotton
2nd
Clara Barton: Standing Up for the Good of Others
Emerson Kidd-Benthall, Tara Shealy
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Liz Shugart
3rd
The Man Who Stood at the Center of the Sun, Galieo Galiei and How He Stood Up Against the Church
Dalia Chemaitilly, Kathleen Heim, Jad Hamze, Ali Devji, Isabel Kagoo
Lausanne Collegiate School, Memphis
Teacher: Catherine Hammons
SENIOR INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE
1st
Parks v. Crow: Sitting to Take a Stand
Alhusain Hadidi
Pleasant View School, Memphis
Teacher: Andre Clarke
2nd
Clarence Darrow: Taking a Stand for Science and Education
AJ Camacho
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Liz Shugart
3rd
Ralph McGill: Taking a Stand in the Segregated South
Walt Buzzini
McCallie School, Chattanooga
Teacher: Duke Richey
SENIOR GROUP PERFORMANCE
1st
The Trials and Triumphs of Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth in an Era of Segregation and Racism
Tori Moore-McMiller, Rebecca Price, Inara Devji, Milanca Wang
Lausanne Collegiate School, Memphis
Teacher: Rebecca Hodges
2nd
Osceola: An American Freedom Fighter Makes a Stand
Dawson Yates, Josh Martin, John Knox
McCallie School, Chattanooga
Teacher: Duke Richey
3rd
Mildred Stahlman: Breaking Boundaries and Standing for Those Who Can't
Gracie Hall, Jennifer Finegan
Dayspring Academy, Greenbrier
Teacher: Jesse Brewer
JUNIOR INDIVIDUAL WEBSITE
1st
Jane Goodall: Protecting the Rights of the Wild
Katie Diehr
Richview Middle School, Clarksville
Teacher: Tabitha Wilson
2nd
Taking a Stand for Democracy: The Protestors at Tiananmen Square
Rulan Gu
West Valley Middle School, Knoxville
Teacher: Karen Peterman
3rd
The Boston Tea Party: Taking a Stand for Colonists' Freedom
Vishva Patel
Pi Beta Phi Elementary School, Gatlinburg
Teacher: Cindy Flynn
JUNIOR GROUP WEBSITE
1st
The Clinton Twelve: Taking a Stand for Integration
Jaden Bogert, Caroline Stedina
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Liz Shugart
2nd
Horace Julian Bond: Taking a Stand for Civil Rights in America
Laila Amziane, Farah Abbad, Manal Abou Shala
Pleasant View School, Memphis
Teacher: Andre Clarke
3rd
Amelia's Wild Ride
Rebecca Cox, Giovanni Pichichero
DeBusk Elementary School, Greeneville
Teacher: Nathan Darnell
SENIOR INDIVIDUAL WEBSITE
1st
They Were Men: King and the Sanitation Workers of Memphis
Mary Coleman
First Assembly Christian School, Cordova
Teacher: Joe Newman
2nd
Solidarity: Bringing Down The Iron Curtain
Andrea Huang
Ravenwood High School, Brentwood
Teacher: Andrew Elrod
3rd
Lewis Hine: Taking a Look Through My Lens
Kiana Patterson
West High School, Knoxville
Teacher: Carrie Hastings
SENIOR GROUP WEBSITE
1st
Dada: The Artists Who Dared to Question
Vamsi Konjeti, Leah Farmer, Sithara Samudrala, Sai Thatigotla
Ravenwood High School, Brentwood
Teacher: Andrew Elrod
2nd
Iconoclast Economist John Maynard Keynes: The Theory That Revolutionized the World
Joe Roebuck, Pranav Saravanan, Noelle Link, Arshia Basutkar
Ravenwood High School, Brentwood
Teacher: Andrew Elrod
3rd
Simón Bolívar; Liberating South American Countries
Erin Maxwell, Ruchika Rathi, Ella Ensign, Elizabeth Rowe, Kathryn Ingle
Girls Preparatory School, Chattanooga
Teachers: Caroline Carlin, Ralph Covino
JUNIOR INDIVIDUAL PAPER
1st
The Battle of Karameh: Taking a Stand that Transformed a People and Built a Movement
Muadth Malley
Pleasant View School, Memphis
Teacher: Andre Clarke
2nd
Henry Agard Wallace: Against Bigots, Chauvinists & Dogs of War
Naisha Chowdhury
Pleasant View School, Memphis
Teacher: Andre Clarke
3rd
Taking a Stand to Save the Obed River
Carter Lowe
Coalfield School, Coalfield
Teacher: Debbie Slack
SENIOR INDIVIDUAL PAPER
1st
Taking A Stand for Humanitarian Intervention: The History of Iraq's Kurds, Realism and the Changing Role of the United Nations
Ibtihal Malley
Pleasant View School, Memphis
Teacher: Andre Clarke
2nd
John Muir: Taking for America's Wild Places
Aden Klein
Gatlinburg-Pittman High School
Teacher: Cindy Flynn
3rd
Thy Will Be Done: Clergy, Napalm, and the War in Vietnam
Joseph Richard
McCallie School, Chattanooga
Teacher: Duke Richey
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SPECIAL AWARD WINNERS
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BEST PROJECT IN AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY, JUNIOR DIVISION:
Junior Group Exhibit
The King of the Ring
Wyatt Devall, Luke Jessie, Maksym Ulmer
St. John Neumann Catholic School, Knoxville
Teacher: Michele Tarricone
BEST PROJECT IN AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY, SENIOR DIVISION:
Senior Individual Documentary
The Bijou Theatre: Taking a Stand for Equality
Jared Watkins
L&N STEM Academy, Knoxville
Teacher: Karen Stanish
BEST PROJECT IN TENNESSEE HISTORY, JUNIOR DIVISION:
Junior Individual Performance
Dolly Parton: Taking a Stanza in History
Eden Carnes
Carnes Homeschool, Friendsville
Teacher: Elithe Carnes
BEST PROJECT IN TENNESSEE HISTORY, SENIOR DIVISION:
Senior Individual Performance
Clarence Darrow: Taking a Stand for Science and Education
AJ Camacho
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Liz Shugart
MARGARET LINDSLEY WARDEN PRIZE FOR BEST PROJECT IN WOMEN'S HISTORY, JUNIOR DIVISION:
Junior Group Exhibit
Betty Friedan's Stand in Changing "Her"story: A Woman's Fight Against the "Feminine Mystique"
Tia Dyson, Trinity McKinney, Maria Murshed, Aaliyah Winston
Memphis Rise Academy, Memphis
Teacher: Amanda Villani
MARGARET LINDSLEY WARDEN PRIZE FOR BEST PROJECT IN WOMEN'S HISTORY, SENIOR DIVISION:
Senior Individual Documentary
The Patriotic Pioneer: Cornelia Fort's Stand for Women in Aviation
Lenora Upchurch
Watertown High School, Watertown
Teachers: Jason Knowles, Barbara Marks
MITCHELL MIELNIK MEMORIAL PRIZE FOR THE BEST PROJECT IN SPORTS, RECREATION, OR THE ENVIRONMENT:
Senior Individual Documentary
Comeback City: Chattanoogans Taking a Stand for a Cleaner, Better City
Griffin Ball
McCallie School, Chattanooga
Teacher: Duke Richey
SOCIETY OF TENNESSEE ARCHIVISTS AWARD FOR ARCHIVAL RESEARCH, JUNIOR DIVISION:
Junior Individual Documentary
Dissidents of Rebellion: The Hidden Stand and Sacrifice of the East Tennessee Bridge Burners
Tate Greene
Clayton-Bradley Academy, Maryville
Teacher: Nicole Whitecotton
SOCIETY OF TENNESSEE ARCHIVISTS AWARD FOR ARCHIVAL RESEARCH, SENIOR DIVISION:
Senior Group Documentary
The Cherokees: Trail to Tribal Rights
Katherine Bell, Komal Patri, Mary Beth Propes, Astra Burke
Girls Preparatory School, Chattanooga
Teachers: Caroline Carlin, Ralph Covino
DR. RUBEN BROOKS AWARD:
Junior Individual Paper
The Battle of Karameh: Taking a Stand that Transformed a People and Built a Movement
Muadth Malley
Pleasant View School, Memphis
Teacher: Andre Clarke
DR. SAM B. SMITH AWARD:
Senior Individual Paper
Taking A Stand for Humanitarian Intervention: The History of Iraq's Kurds, Realism, and the Changing Role of the United Nations
Ibtihal Malley
Pleasant View School, Memphis
Teacher: Andre Clarke
THE AGE OF JACKSON AWARD, JUNIOR DIVISION:
Junior Individual Documentary
South Carolina and the Nullification Crisis
Joel Alejandro Santiago-Baretti
West Creek Middle School, Clarksville
Teacher: Michael Cleghorn
THE AGE OF JACKSON AWARD, SENIOR DIVISION:
Senior Group Documentary
The Cherokees: Trail to Tribal Rights
Katherine Bell, Komal Patri, Mary Beth Propes, Astra Burke
Girls Preparatory School, Chattanooga
Teachers: Caroline Carlin, Ralph Covino
TEACHER OF THE YEAR, JUNIOR DIVISION:
Tabitha Wilson, Richview Middle School, Clarksville
TEACHER OF THE YEAR, SENIOR DIVISION:
Jill Robbins, L&N STEM Academy, Knoxville
UNDERSTANDING SACRIFICE INSTITUTE, JUNIOR DIVISION:
Whitney Joyner, Northeast Middle School, Clarksville
UNDERSTANDING SACRIFICE INSTITUTE, SENIOR DIVISION:
Scott Johnson, Battle Ground Academy, Franklin
2016-2017 TEACHER AMBASSADOR:
Scott Johnson, Battle Ground Academy, Franklin