Middle and high school students from across central Nebraska met at Hastings College March 15 for the district History Day contest. Following the 2017 theme of “Taking a Stand in History,” students presented research on a variety of topics, including everything from the Stories of Rosa Parks to Theodore Roosevelt to the Vietnam War, as well as the history of ice cream and mobile phones.
Winners from each event advance to the state History Day competition, to be held April 8, while high school seniors were also eligible for competitive history scholarships to attend Hastings College.
A tie was declared for the grand prize. Kai Anderson, Lucy Nielsen and Chyna Delker, all from Hastings High School, received a $6,000 grand prize scholarship to Hastings College.
Anderson was honored for presenting the top historical paper titled “Bedrich Smetana: Romantic Nationalist Music and the Development of a Czech National Musical Style.” Nielsen and Delker were recognized presenting the top group documentary with “Lech Walesa: A Spark for Solidarity.”
The $5,000 first runner up scholarship went to Hastings High’s Jordan Ismaiel, with the project titled “Margaret Keane and the Big-Eyed Waifs.” The $4,000 second runner up scholarship was awarded to Hastings High’s Tavia Steenson and Emily Beave, with the project titled “Standing at the Schoolhouse Gate.”
A separate $100 cash prize as part of the NEBRASKALand Foundation Award for the best presentation on any historical event that took place in Nebraska was presented to DeeDee Crisler and Felicity Conway of Hastings Middle School for their Junior Group exhibit telling of The Plum Creek Massacre.
Top Award Recipients
Junior Division (grades 6-8)
Individual historical paper – Ben Anderson of Hastings Middle School
Individual exhibit – Hunter Bradshaw of Hastings Middle School
Group exhibit – Faith Cowling and Jenna Cercle of Hastings Middle School
Group performance – Erika Nielsen and Sadye Bell of Hastings Middle School
Seniors Division (grades 9-12)
Individual website – Jordan Ismaiel of Hastings High School
Group website – Kora Elms Fleming, Madison Beck, Sydni Sullivan of Hastings High School
Group documentary – Lucy Nielsen and Chyna Delker of Hastings High School
Individual documentary – Audrey Weeks of Hastings High School
Group exhibit – Jennifer Mendoza, Anna Sarmiento, Maira Gallegos of Hastings High School
Individual exhibit – Haylee O’Connell of Hastings High School
Individual historical paper – Kai Anderson of Hastings Senior High School
Group performance – Tavia Steenson, Emily Beave of Hastings High School
NEBRASKALand Foundation Award
This award is a $100 cash prize for the best presentation on any historical event that took place in Nebraska. The award was given to DeeDee Crisler and Felicity Conway for their Junior Group exhibit telling of The Plum Creek Massacre.
Hastings College is a private, four-year institution located in Hastings, Nebraska, that focuses on student academic and extracurricular achievement. With 64 majors and 15 pre-professional programs, Hastings College has been named among “Great Schools, Great Prices” by U.S. News & World Report and a “Best in the Midwest” by The Princeton Review. For more, go to hastings.edu.
