History Day wins focus on ‘individuals’
Topics: Schools, Education, history day
Posted by KCSOSCOMM Wed Mar 11, 2009 09:17:57 PDT
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Encouraged to explore “The Individual in History: Actions and Legacies,” approximately 150 students put their research and findings on display at the 26th annual Kern County History Day competition held (today) (March 7) at Ridgeview High School in Bakersfield. Winners in each category earned the right to compete at History Day in California — April 30-May 1 in Sacramento. State winners go on to compete at National History Day, June 14-18 at the University of Maryland.
Students in grades 4-12 from 22 Kern County schools competed. They had been involved in research since the beginning of the school year preparing historical papers, exhibits, performances, documentaries, Web sites and posters designed around the National History Day theme of “The Individual in History: Actions and Legacies.”
Thorner School’s Maveric Guzman and Elizabeth Nakagawa chose documentary as their winning vehicle in the junior group documentary category. The judges watched with interest as Guzman and Nakagawa’s entry “A Thorn in His Side” used narration, pictures, interviews and graphics to chronicle the story of how women’s suffrage leader Alice Paul help sway the opinion of President Woodrow Wilson.
“I never knew about the suffrage movement before we began this project, and that women didn’t have the right to vote back then,” Nakagawa said. “When women got divorced they couldn’t even get custody of the children and would lose their money and the house. To this day on a percentage basis they still don’t earn equal pay for their work.”
Grant Stanton’s exhibit “Ulysses S. Grant: Man Not Monster,” which was on display with dozens of other notable efforts in the Ridgeview Gym was not overlooked by the judges. It was one of two first place winners with its well-defined display of newspaper clippings, photos and memorabilia. It even included a Civil War jacket that Stanton made himself from a discarded Goodwill coat and authentic replicas of military buttons and badges.
“I found history does not give Grant the respect he deserves,” Stanton said. “I read through his personal memoirs and other books and articles about him, which showed he played a big role in healing the nation after the Civil War. Although his administration was the most scandalized in Presidential history, he was for the most part not involved in the scandals.”
Still others took the theatrical approach to express their knowledge of history in solo or group performances that included period costumes and portable sets. Two Fruitvale Jr. High teams took both of the group documentary titles in the junior division with performances based on World War II concentration camp survivor Eli Wiesel and American civil rights activist Sylvia Mendez.
The Kern County Superintendent of Schools, law firm of Klein, DeNatale, Goldner, Cooper, Rosenlieb & Kimball, LLP and Ridgeview High School sponsored the county event.
KERN COUNTY HISTORY DAY 2009WINNERS
*(Students eligible to represent Kern County at History Day in California, May 13-16 in Sacramento)
SENIOR DIVISION (Grades 9-12)
Historical Paper
* Jillian Concepcion, East High — “Chuck Yeager: Faster Than a Speeding Bullet”
Group Documentary
* Ruben Rivera and Sergio Gonzalez, East High — “Benito Juarez”
* Dylan Del Rio and Joseph Lopez, East High — “Burt Rutan: Aviation Pioneer”
* Lee Ann Oliver and Brandon Killough, East High — “Mikhail Gorbachev: Soviet Reformer”
Individual Documentary
* Morgan Barnes, Bakersfield High — “Sing Out Freedom: the Pete Seeger Story”
* Sarah Moore, Centennial High — “Silently Leaving a Legacy: Chiune Sugihara”
Individual Performance
* Sanjeevani Kumar, Frontier High — Eli Wiesel: Perils of Indifference”
Group Exhibit
* Tayler Obenshain and Alyssa Meeks, Liberty High — “Sally Ride: The First American Woman in Space”
* Alex Knight and Charles Knight, Liberty High — “The Father of Modern Chemistry: Antoine Lavoisier”
Individual Exhibit
* Jade Brink, Liberty High — Elvis Presley: The King of Rock and Roll”
* Grant Stanton, Centennial High — “Ulysses S. Grant: Man Not Monster”
Individual Web Site
* Breanna Fields, Liberty High — “Julie Krone”
* Michael Rice, Liberty High — “Winston Churchill: Legacy of the Preservation of Democracy”
JUNIOR DIVISION (Grades 4-8)
Group Performance
* Aaliyah Beed, Gabriela Forter, Dylan Gonzales, Madison Olinger and Richard Sottile, Fruitvale Jr. High — “Eli Wiesel: A Survivor’s Legacy, a Messenger for Mankind”
* Sameen Bramer, Bianca Hinojosa, Calvin Laverty, Marissa Manos and Ramneet Sahota, Fruitvale Jr. High — “Sylvia Mendez: The Unknown Story of a Young Girl’s Fight for Equality in Education”
ALTERNATE: Alexis Aguirre, Moriah Franco, Niko Gonzalez, Quichaye Hicks and Annie Murrell, Thorner School — “Stepping Out of His Shadow”
Individual Performance
* Andrew Kerwin, Fruitvale Jr. High — “Jan Scruggs: Healing a Nation”
Group Documentary
* Maveric Guzman and Elizabeth Nakagawa, Thorner School — “A Thorn in His Side”
* Geoff Gonzales, Ryan Moffit and Kody Ryan-Mitchell, Columbia Elementary — Byte Into Apple: It’s Insanely Great: The Actions and Legacies of Steve Jobs”
ALTERNATE: Erica Cole, Zachary Lewandowski and Brook McLaughlin, Pond School — “Elvis Presley”
Individual Documentary
* Grace Moore, Fruitvale Jr. High — “Jimmy Carter’s Legacy: Actions Beyond Expectations”
Group Exhibit
* Michelle Laurendine and Meredith Neilsen, Fruitvale Jr. High — “JoAnn Robinson: Civil Rights Advocate”
* MaKay Moss and Amy Williams, Columbia Elementary — “John Walsh: A Legacy for America’s Children”
ALTERNATE: Hannah Pope and Emily Preston, Endeavour Elementary — “The Mystery and Legacy of Amelia Earhart”
Individual Exhibit
* Joshua Dunbach, Fruitvale Jr. High — “Admiral Yamamoto: Awakening a ‘Sleeping Giant’”
* Anne Bardet, Fruitvale Jr. High — “Mother Teresa: Saint of the Gutters”
ALTERNATE: McKenzie White, Endeavour Elementary — “Dr. Seuss: The Grinch, Yertle and Horton, Too: The Legacy for Me and for You”
Individual Web Site
* Larissa Gallegos, Almond Tree Middle — “Adolf Hitler and His Destruction”
* Brittany Louey, Fruitvale Jr. High — “Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream”
Group Poster (Grades 4-5 only)
* Colby Freeman and Jacob Kartinen, Highland Elementary — “Andrei Sahkarov: Peace, Progress and Human Rights”
* Julia Gonzales, Morgan Kaess and Jackson Olinger, Columbia Elementary — “The Great Communicator: A Man of Actions & Legacy”
ALTERNATE: Kacie Hoffman, Kristiana Hohler, Angel Key and Kylie Redwine, Highland Elementary — “One M.A.D.D. Woman — Candace Lightner”
Individual Poster (Grades 4-5 only)
* Emily Baumstark, Highland Elementary — “Looking Through the Lens — Toyo Miyatake”
* Christopher Trickey, Endeavour Elementary — “Chuck Yeager’s Legacy in Supersonic Flight Research”
ALTERNATE: Elsie Mares, Alicante Avenue School — “Robert Oppenheimer: The Atomic Bomb Legacy”
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