HCPSSHCPSS Students Advance to National History Day Competition
May 5th, 2022
Eighteen Howard County Public School System (HCPSS) students will advance to the National History Day Competition, being held virtually in early June. The students won first or second place at the state-level Maryland History Day Competition, held on April 30, 2022 at University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Of the thirty six entries that will represent Maryland at the National History Day Competition, twelve are from HCPSS. In addition, six HCPSS students were honored with special awards at the state contest.
Students in grades 6-12 conducted research related to this year’s National History Day theme, “Debate and Diplomacy in History.” Students analyzed information, drew conclusions and created a History Day project in one of five categories (exhibit, performance, multimedia documentary, research paper and website) to submit for review at the school, county, and then state level.
A list of HCPSS students advancing to the national competition is included below. These students have already won competitions at the school and county level, and were competing against hundreds of students from school systems across the state. Tracy Spillman, Gifted and Talented Resource Teacher at Lime Kiln Middle, was also recognized at the state contest as the Howard County History Day Teacher of the Year.
Program Category Winners
Junior Individual Exhibit
2nd Place
The Trans-Alaska Pipeline and the Long Lasting Consequences
Student: Sam Liebling
School: Bonnie Branch Middle School
Teacher(s): Nancy Barnes, Chris Nobis, Hannah Mittel
Junior Group Exhibits
1st Place
“Too Strong for a Woman”: How Bernice Sandler Sparked Title IX
Student(s): Charlotte Tettelin, Simrah Khan
School: Burleigh Manor Middle School
Teacher(s): Geordie Paulus, Robyn Page, Beth Berkeley, Carl Bell
Junior Group Documentary
2nd Place
Tear Down This Wall: The Role of Debate & Diplomacy in Germany’s Reunification
Student(s): Cheren Song, Jayen Tolia, Tevin Son
School: Lime Kiln Middle School
Teacher(s): Tracy Spillman, Stefanie Taylor, Gary McMullin
Junior Papers
2nd Place
Relief, Recovery, and Reform: Debate and Diplomacy in the New Deal and FDR’s Court-Packing Plan
Student: Sakshi Tirodkar
School: Mayfield Woods Middle School
Teacher(s): Daniel Stone
Junior Individual Performance
2nd Place
The Kanagawa Treaty: Unlocking Japan through Gunboat Diplomacy
Student: Sabrina Wang
School: Burleigh Manor Middle School
Teacher(s): Geordie Paulus, Robyn Page, Beth Berkeley
Junior Individual Website
1st Place
Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring: The Power of Environmental Debate
Student: Helen Zhu
School: Burleigh Manor Middle School
Teacher(s): Robyn Page, Carl Bell
Junior Group Website
1st Place
Loving V. Virginia (1967): Exploring the Debate that Led to Marital Freedom
Student(s): Addison Greenwald, Mia Pinkham
School: Bonnie Branch Middle School
Teacher(s): Christopher Nobis, Anne Schaefer, Hannah Mittel
Senior Group Exhibits
2nd Place
Rotten Fruit: The Banana Massacre of 1928
Student(s): Anna Chalupa, Gitanjali Raghava
School: Howard High School
Teacher(s): Mary Saha
Senior Group Documentary
1st Place
Changing the U.S. Through Debate, The Story of Yick Wo V. Hopkins
Student(s): Ryan Tehrani, Ryan Zhou
School: Howard High School
Teacher(s): Danelle Brennan
Senior Paper
1st Place
Bretton Woods, How Cooperation Led to the Creation of a New World Order
Student: Alex Yang
School: Marriotts Ridge High School
Teacher(s): Tyler Meinhart
2nd Place
Exemplar or Crusader? The Debate over Philippine Annexation and America’s Departure from Isolationism
Student: Nathan Zhong
School: River Hill High School
Teacher(s): Callie Casper
Senior Individual Website
2nd Place
The Treaty of Versailles: A Peace Dismantled
Student: Daniel Li
School: Marriotts Ridge High school
Teacher(s): Christina Costabile
Special Award Winners
Excellence in Women’s History sponsored by the University of Maryland, Baltimore County Department of History
Roe v. Wade: The Debate That Changed History
Student(s): Leilani Ryang, Phu Tran, Shriya Khosla
School: Lime Kiln Middle School
Teacher(s): Gary McMullin, Tracy Spillman
The Major General John E. Morrison Award for Excellence in Education and Innovation sponsored by the National Cryptologic Museum Foundation
The Space Race: The Fight for The Moon
Junior Individual Exhibit
Student: Aleina Pulim
School: Clarksville Middle School
Teacher(s): Elizabeth Ceglia, Margaret Brothman, Catherine Mairs
Excellence in Labor History sponsored by Bill Barry and friends
Bread and Roses: The Lasting Achievements of Lawrence Mill Strikers
Senior Group Website
Student(s): Claire Williams, Milan Ta
School: Reservoir High School
Teacher(s): Jennifer Coker
Howard County History Day Teacher of the Year
Tracy Spillman, Gifted & Talented Resource Teacher
Lime Kiln Middle School