HCPSS Students Advance to National History Day National Contest

May 12th, 2026

Twenty-three students will advance to the National History Day (NHD) National Contest after
placing first or second in the Maryland History Day competition held at University of Maryland,
Baltimore County (UMBC) on May 2, 2026. The 2026 National Contest will be held in June at the
University of Maryland, College Park.

This year’s NHD theme was “Revolution, Reaction, and Reform in History.” Students in grades
6–12 conducted research related to the topic, analyzed information, drew conclusions, and
created a project in one of five categories (documentary, exhibit, performance, research paper
or website) to submit for review at the school, county and then state level.
In addition to those advancing to the national competition, two HCPSS students were also
honored with special awards at the state contest for Excellence in Labor History and Excellence
in LGBTQ+ History. Elizabeth Berkeley, Media Specialist from Burleigh Manor Middle School,
was recognized as the Howard County History Day Teacher of the Year.

A list of HCPSS students advancing to the national competition is included below along with the special award winners. These students won competitions at the school and county level and were competing against hundreds of students from school systems across the state.

Program Category Winners

Senior Group Documentary

2nd Place
Students: Aria Fulton, Evelyn Rubens and Lena Yumoto
Title: “Sunlight and Dynamite: The Secrets of the Stasi Files”
School: River Hill High School
Teacher: Callie Casper

Senior Individual Performance

1st Place
Student: Shaunak Sahoo
Title: “Ideas at War: Hetch Hetchy and America’s Environmental Divide”
School: Marriotts Ridge High School
Teacher: Christina Costabile

2nd Place
Student: Maizy Burkom
Title: “Behind Closed Doors: How the Willowbrook State School Scandal Revolutionized
Institutional Care”
School: Howard High School
Teacher: Leah Foran

Senior Individual Website

2nd Place
Student: Ainoor Sair
Title: “Bread and Roses: The Struggle, Sweat, and Fight for Justice”
School: Howard High School
Teacher: Leah Foran

Senior Individual Exhibit

1st Place
Students: Mira and Suriya Kalirai
Title: “The Stanford Prison Experiment: How a Revolutionary Study Led to Radical Reformation”
School: River Hill High School
Teacher: Callie Casper

Junior Group Documentary

1st Place
Students: Eve Samuel and Leonie Brown
Title: “The Greensboro 4: A Story of Courage and Change”
School: Wilde Lake Middle School
Teacher: Joanna Tanner

Junior Individual Documentary

2nd Place
Student: Isaac Chang
Title: “Osage Murders: Oil, The Ni-u-kon-ska, and the Transformation of the FBI”
School: Clarksville Middle School
Teacher: Jessica DiBenedetto

Junior Individual Exhibit

1st Place
Student: Hiba Hakkim
Title: “The Oyster Navy”
School: Burleigh Manor Middle School
Teacher: Nicholas Valenti

Junior Group Exhibit

1st Place
Students: Aadhav Mohanraj, Lucas Li, and Veer Shah
Title: “Six Dots That Changed the World: Giving Millions the Power to Read”
School: Lime Kiln Middle School
Teacher: Gary McMullin

Junior Individual Performance

1st Place
Student: Clara Wang
Title: “The Meiji Restoration: Japan’s Industrial Revolution”
School: Burleigh Manor Middle School
Teacher: Nicholas Valenti

Junior Group Performance

1st Place
Students: Aditi Nambiar, Anwita Thoranadhula, Ritika Kawade, and Tanvi Anne
Title: “The Stanton and Mott Legacy”
School: Patapsco Middle School
Teacher: Kalina Salsman

Junior Individual Website

1st Place
Student: Atinuke Otolorin
Title: “Decoding the Dream: How the Creation of Barbie Transformed Societal Views through
Generations of Children”
School: Clarksville Middle School
Teacher: Todd Wright

Junior Group Website

1st Place
Students: Aaron Ding and Emma Chen
Title: “From Science to Society: How the Human Genome Project Revolutionized Medicine,
Privacy, and Public Awareness”
School: Clarksville Middle School
Teacher: Beth Ceglia

Special Award Winners

Award for Excellence in Labor History

Student: Sydney Monroe
Title: “Rails of Resistance: The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters’ Road to Reform”
Category: Senior Individual Documentary
School: Long Reach High School
Teacher: Lisa Milak

Award for Excellence in LGBTQ+ History

Students: Arabelle Radcliff and Jessica Peters
Title: “The Pink Triangle’s Reformation”
Category: Junior Group Performance
School: Patuxent Valley Middle School
Teachers: Monica Chelidona, Tim Williamson

Howard County History Day Teacher of the Year

Elizabeth Berkeley
Burleigh Manor Middle School